The Philippine Army is preparing its retiring or separating
personnel for a smooth transition to civilian life via its “Transition
Assistance Program.”
Under the program, retiring personnel are made to attend a
business/livelihood seminar and training where livelihood or business
opportunities are presented and from which they could select which one to
venture into after retiring from active service.
This, according to Lt. Col. Bernardo R. Fortez Jr., aims to
provide them additional source of income other than merely relying on their
monthly pensions.
"Also, being engaged in a productive endeavor will
boost their morale and give them a sense of pride as they mainstream into
civilian life," Fortez said.
For three years now, he said, the 9th Infantry Division of
the Philippine Army based in Barangay Tinangis here has partnered with the
Department of Agriculture in the conduct of livelihood seminars for its retiring
personnel.
While the mandatory age for retirement for most government
personnel is 65, for military personnel, it is 56.
Fortez said this year, 29 of their retiring personnel
attended the lectures on various agriculture-based livelihood undertakings.
The three-day training held on March 17-19 inside the Camp
Elias Angeles here was capped with actual visit to the facilities and projects
inside the DA compound where the participants had hands-on learning of some of
the topics discussed to them.
Experts from the Bicol Integrated Agricultural Research
Center (BIARC) of the DA served as resource persons.
Among the topics discussed and the corresponding resource
persons were: rice production -- Anacleto Esplana; organic composting --
Angelina Peñaserada; goat production -- Marianito Tesorero; native chicken
production -- Fortunato Balbis; grafting of fruit trees -- Dominica Camposano;
cleft plant propagation -- Augusto Saldo, and mushroom production -- Pedro
Oliver.
The training culminated with the holding of the graduation
ceremonies which was graced by Col. Milfredo M. Melegrito, Chief of Staff of
the 9th Infantry Division.
In his message to the participants, Melegrito said Filipinos
generally consider a person successful if he is employed.
"But in other countries a person is considered
successful if he runs his own business or enterprise no matter how small it
is," he said, underscoring that the success of the transition program for
retiring personnel will ultimately be measured in the number of participants or
attendees who have dared to venture into an entrepreneurial undertaking and
became true entrepreneur.
Also present during the closing ceremony was Corazon A.
Orbon, BIARC assistance manager, who represented Luz R. Marcelino, the BIARC
manager; Emily Bordado, DA regional information officer; Pedro Oliver and
Arlene San Buenaventura also of BIARC.
http://www.pna.gov.ph/index.php?idn=2&sid=&nid=2&rid=747416
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