Each Filipino has the responsibility to protect children and students amid recent incidents of high-profile school shootings in different parts of the country, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. said on Friday.
He made the remarks during his visit to the Patul Elementary School in Santiago City, Isabela.
“Ngayon po ay nakakalungkot na mayroon tayong nakikita na mga pangyayari sa ilang eskuwelahan. Nangyari po ito, tiyak ako na nabalitaan na ninyo na nangyari sa Tacloban, nangyari sa South Cotabato, at sa Zamboanga. Ito po ay kailangan po nating bantayan nang mabuti,” the President said.
He went on: “Kailangan po magkasama tayong lahat. Hindi po lamang ang pulis, hindi lamang ang mga teacher, hindi lamang po ang mga magulang, hindi lamang po ang pamahalaan. Kailangan po lahat tayo ay magkaisa tayo at magsama-sama tayo. Bantayan po natin nang mabuti ang ating mga kabataan.”
In the past quarter, three school shootings were reported in Tacloban City, Zamboanga City, and in South Cotabato that took eight lives and injured scores of other students.
Marcos assured that the government is instilling measures to keep children safe in schools.
In Isabela City, the President witnessed the rollout of the Kaagapay Program in the Cagayan Valley, which seeks to enable parents recognize signs of bullying, abuse and online risks in their children.
Authorities suspect that school shooters were influenced by malicious online actors, prompting hot debates on regulating social media, online media content, and online games.
“Bantayan po natin nang mabuti ang ating mga bata, ang ating mga anak. Bantayan po natin na hindi sila nasasama sa mga ganyang klaseng kagagawan,” the President added.