Kalinaw News: 10-day emergency employment up for 41 FRs in AgNor

Posted to the Kalinaw News (Oct 21, 2020): 10-day emergency employment up for 41 FRs in AgNor (By 23rd Infantry Battalion)

BUENAVISTA, Agusan del Norte – Forty-One (41) Former Rebels(FRs) who are currently staying at the 23rd Infantry (Masigasig) Battalion are now undergoing a 10-day Emergency Employment Program (EEP), also known as “Tulong Panghanapbuhay sa Ating Disadvantaged/Displaced (TUPAD) Program of the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE).

The EEP or TUPAD program for the forty-one (41) FRs started last October 14 and is set to be completed on Saturday, October 24, 2020.

The said program is undertaken by the 41 FRs at the headquarters of the 23rd IB located at Jamboree Site, Purok 6, Barangay Alubihid, Buenavista, Agusan del Norte.

The TUPAD program is a community-based package of assistance that provides emergency employment for displaced workers, underemployed and seasonal workers, for a minimum period of ten (10) days, but not to exceed a maximum of thirty (30) days, depending on the nature of work to be performed.

Under the program, the 41 FRs are presently involved in social and agro-forestry community projects such as repairs, maintenance, debris clearing, segregation and materials recovery, tree planting and seedling preparations.

The project is the result of the convergence of efforts of the 23rd IB and the DOLE Agusan del Norte with the aim of providing help and support for financial needs of the former combatants of the Communist New People’s Army Terrorist (CNT) who decided to change their lives by laying down their arms and returned to the mainstream society.

The program is also a big help to the daily financial needs of the FRs and their families especially during the time of the pandemic.

Alias Jack, is among the forty-one (41) FRs at the 23rd IB who benefited from the TUPAD program.

He expressed gratitude to the government and the Army for the support he received, saying that the wages he earned had helped sustain the needs of his family.

“Kani nga trabaho nga gipahigayon sa DOLE dako kaayo og natabang kanamo aron masustintohan ang inadlaw nga panghinanglanon sa akong pamilya,” Jack said.

Lt. Col. Julius Cesar C. Paulo, 23IB Acting Commanding Officer, conveyed his gratitude to the DOLE, noting the importance of the ten ( 10)-day work given to the FRs and its impacts to their families.

“The 23IB, together with its partner agencies will always adhere to the promises of helping the FRs achieve a productive and progressive living with their families,” Paulo said.

He also emphasized the need to capacitate the FRs for them to be able to face the various economic challenges as they begin their renewed lives with their families.

“With the support of other line agencies through convergence, we can assure that the lives of the former CNT combatants will be improved through the different programs and services, such as the TUPAD program of DOLE,” Paulo said.

He also urged the remaining CNTs to look at the lives of their former comrades who now enjoy the full support of the government.

“There is no good future waiting for you in continuing to embrace the hopeless cause and ideology of the communist movement. While you continue to adhere to their false promises, its not only you who continue to suffer but also your families, especially the children. While you still have the precious time, abandon the CNT movement and go back to the folds of the law,” Paulo said.
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https://www.kalinawnews.com/10-day-emergency-employment-up-for-41-frs-in-agnor/