City dads to endorse students for jobs at CH

CEBU, Philippines - All Cebu City councilors have agreed to endorse up to 45 students for the Summer Job program of the Cebu City government.

 The applicants will be picked from the councilors' respective districts so all 80 barangays will have an even chance to have their young constituents benefit from the program.

 Aside from the councilors, Vice Mayor Joy Augustus Young may endorse up to 63 students while the Mayor may endorse up to 100 students.

 The city has opened 1,000 slots for the Special Program for the Employment of Students (SPES) this year.

 The program was allocated P6 million at P6,000 for the salary of each student.

Students will be paid P300 per day for 20 days of service.

Last year, the daily salary was only P267 but was increased by the Department of Manpower Development and Placement to P300 this year considering the increase in the transportation fare and basic commodities.

 SPES is mandated under Republic Act 7323 and is created to provide income opportunities to poor but deserving students so they may be encouraged to continue schooling.

The program, open to students aged 18 to 24 years old, aims to financially assist students to pursue their education, minimize juvenile delinquency, and provide work experience.

 Students will work in city hall offices for 20 days. The first batch of student workers will start on April 4 and end on May 3 while the second batch will start on May 4 and end on May 31.

 Last year, the DMDP opened 300 slots only. But requests for additional slots poured in so the number was raised to 1,000.

 The DMDP does not want to hire the same number of students they hired last year which reached 2,200.

 DMDP Chief Fidel Magno said too many summer job employees are hard to manage.

He added that the number of slots they opened was based on the demands of different departments. — THE FREEMAN