THE Province of Davao de Oro is looking into the possible violations of a private school in the municipality of Maco after students, including minors, were stranded for nearly two months while the province was placed under enhanced community quarantine.
In a statement issued on Wednesday evening, May 13, Davao de Oro Governor Jayvee Tyron Uy said they are already investigating the report of stranded students inside the private school in Davao de Oro.
"We are yet to know whether the school committed violations. But considering the crisis we're in, we believe that it is important for these children to be in the safest place possible -- at home with their family. Hence, the priority as of the moment is to ensure their health, safety, and well-being," the governor said.
The governor said that since March 16, all classes were suspended and all activities inside schools were strictly prohibited under the Provincial Executive Orders 23, 25, and 28, and the Omnibus Community Quarantine Guidelines of the Inter-agency Task Force.
He said the Provincial Government has started facilitating the return of the students to their respective families provided that they complete their 14-day community quarantine in a facility approved and accredited by our Provincial Health Office.
"We will assist the children, provide their needs, and help them return to their homes," Uy said. "We are hopeful of the school's cooperation, especially in these challenging times. Our goal is to contain and prevent the spread of our common enemy -- Covid-19."
During a radio interview Thursday, May 14, via 87.5 Davao City Disaster Radio, Uy said he initially received the information on Monday from the mayor of Maco through the barangay official in Barangay in Lapu-Lapu.
These students were asking for medical certificates from the barangay to be able to go home.
On Tuesday, May 12, he sent a team from the Provincial Health Office, Provincial Social Department, and the Department of Education (DepEd) Division of Davao de Oro to assess the situation inside the private school which he identified as Community Technical College of Southeastern Mindanao.
He said the school is registered under the Security Exchange Commission (SEC) and accredited by DepEd for the school year 2019-2020, but its application for renewal for the next school year is still pending.
During the assessment, the administrator of the school bared that there are around 90 people inside the private school. The school has yet to provide the province the profile of its students.
The team cited that there are minors inside the facility as young as five years old and senior high school students. The administrator said they were stuck in the facility after the community quarantine was implemented. They were waiting for their graduation, but with the lockdown, the students were unable to go home.
Uy said the school official requested to make their school a quarantine facility for the students before they will go home, but based on the assessment of the health officials, the school is not conducive enough to be a quarantine facility.
Meanwhile, the governor added that DepEd in Davao de Oro is investigating whether the school has violated quarantine protocols after they received reports that the school has continued to conduct school activities and summer classes despite the prohibition to do so.