IT is criminal negligence to allow the feeding of spoiled milk or nutribuns to schoolchildren, members of the Young Guns bloc in the House of Representatives said Wednesday.
This may be the crime committed by education officials who permitted the delivery of expired milk or bread to public schools last year during the time of Vice President Sara Duterte as education secretary, Representatives Jay Khonghun of Zambales and La Union Paolo Ortega V said Wednesday.
They said the “principal” may be as guilty as her underlings under the principle of command responsibility.
Ako Bicol Party-list Rep. Rizaldy Co, who is House Committee on Appropriations chairman, said those responsible for the irregularities reported by the Commission on Audit (COA) in the implementation of the P5.7 billion school-based feeding program of the Department of Education (DepEd) last year should be made to account for their misdeeds.
“Kawawa ‘yung mga bata sa ating public schools na intended beneficiaries. Sana di sila nakainom ng sirang gatas or nakakain ng bulok na tinapay, pero baka nagutom sila,” he said.
Co supported calls for his colleagues for an investigation of the mess to ensure that it is not repeated.
Ortega said the school-based feeding program aims to help schoolchildren get proper nutrition, especially when they are in school.
“Eh kung sıra ang gatas at nutribun o tinapay na dineliver, anong kinain ng mga bata? Wala. Kung ako ang magulang ng mga apektadong bata, magagalit ako,” he said.
Khonghun said the failure of DepEd officials under VP Duterte to implement the laudable program properly not only deprived the children of getting appropriate and adequate nutrients but also of the opportunity to learn well.
“Kapag gutom ka, kumakalam ang sikmura mo – maging bata o matanda – ay di ka makakapag-focus sa pag-aaral o sa anumang ginagawa mo,” Khonghun said.
“That is why we say this is criminal neglect on the part of the implementers of the program, from the highest level at DepEd to the level of the school-recipient,” Ortega and Khonghun both stressed.
They said the culpability becomes heavier if there was a pupil who got sick because of the expired milk or nutribun delivered.
“Sana, wala namang na-ospital sa kanila,” they said.
“The suppliers are equally guilty and they, too, should be punished,” they added.
The two lawmakers pointed out that thousands of schoolchildren were affected since the delivery of spoiled milk and nutribuns with molds or insects, as reported by the COA, took place in 10 of the country’s 17 regions.
“Karamihan nitong sampung rehiyon ay nasa Mindanao. Mistulang pinabayaan ng tanggapan ni VP ang mismong kanyang mga kababayan doon,” they stressed.
