For public-school teachers who now have to catch up with modern education methods, a laptop is more than a gadget: it’s a lifeline.
So it was a big bonus for teachers in San Pedro City, Laguna that the city government under Mayor Art Mercado finally made good on one of its pledges last June: the distribution of free laptops for the city’s public-school teachers.
Mercado himself led the ceremonial turnover of the first batch of laptops for public-school teachers in an event held last July 28 at the San Pedro Schools Division Office (SDO) headquarters inside the San Pedro Central Elementary School.
In a social media post, Mercado affirmed his continued support for its education sector, which had been one of the top priorities of his administration since 2022.
“Ang mga laptop na ito ay hindi lamang mga kagamitan, ito ay pagkilala sa sipag, dedikasyon, at pagmamahal ng ating mga guro sa paghubog ng kinabukasan ng bawat batang San Pedrense. Kayo ang dahilan kung bakit mas maliwanag ang bukas ng ating mga anak,” the mayor said.
In an interview with OpinYon Laguna, San Pedro City Education Officer Jimbo Ambayec reported that the city government has allotted laptop units for over 2,000 public-school teachers in San Pedro City, from kindergarten to Grade 12.
"Bale eto pong pinasimulan ni Mayor Art Mercado ay unang batch pa lamang ng ating mga ipapamahagi, 700 laptop units," the official said.
“Kasama na po sa ibinigay natin ay libreng laptop bag at mouse,” he added.
Ambayec also said that the city government is now working on a “deed of donation” that will effectively transfer ownership of the laptops to the teachers themselves.
“Naisip po kasi namin na mas maganda at mas matipid po from a local-government point of view kung sa mga teachers na po mismo ang pagmamay-ari ng laptop,” he explained.
Additional help
Meanwhile, the city government is also working on additional programs to sustain the city’s teachers amid current high costs of basic goods and commodities.
For the celebration of World Teachers’ Day this coming October, the LGU is planning to provide financial assistance worth P8,500 to all public-school teachers and non-teaching personnel in San Pedro City.
"Ito naman pong financial assistance ay matagal na rin pong ibinibigay ng ating lokal na pamahalaan ever since naupo po sa pwesto si Mayor Art," Ambayec said.
"And for this year po, dinagdagan pa po natin ang ating financial assistance, lalo na po sa panahon ngayon na tumataas na ang presyo ng mga bilihin at gasolina."
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