KIDAPAWAN CITY – An estimated 450 Indigenous People (IP) students were expected to benefit from the two-classroom Kapuso-type school building in Barangay Perez and Barangay Illomavis, both in Kidawapan City, Cotabato, during the Groundbreaking Ceremony.
The GMA Kapuso Foundation Inc. (GMAKFI), the Department of Education, the Local Government Unit of Kidapawan City, and the 10th Infantry (Agila) Division signed the Memorandum of Agreement to start the construction of classrooms designed to withstand 280 kilometers per hour (kph) windspeed and 8.0 magnitude earthquake as part of the continuous support of the government to quake-affected residents in Kidapawan City.
Likewise, the proposed school building is situated away from the fault lines. It is located at the ancestral domain of the Obo-Manobo tribe where the IP leaders donated.
Rikki Escudero-Catibog, Executive President and Chief Operating Officer of GMAKFI, said he expected to finish the project within three to four months.
“The project was put to reality because of the cooperation of the 10ID, LGU, and NGAs. Initially, we planned to build a village for the quake-affected residents. We had raised funds. However, the pandemic entered and all our plans were compromised. Now COVID lay low. We shifted in building schools based on available resources and needs of the community,” Catibog added.
Meanwhile, 10ID Commander Major General Jose Eriel M Niembra expressed his commitment to supervising and sustaining the construction.
“It’s one way of helping our people escape the clutches of poverty, no other than education. First, we’ll build schools where our children can go and study. This will help countless children achieve their dreams,” MGen Niembra added.
In October 2019, a 6.0 magnitude earthquake struck places in Cotabato that affected 11,000 families.
