BAGUIO CITY – Officials of the male and female dorms of the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP) are calling on the public to support their annual Christmas livelihood fair that will run up to the end of the year to help in generating resources for the persons deprived of liberty (PDLs), their families and the improvement of the livelihood and multipurpose facilities of both detention centers in the city.
Chief Inspector Crispin Dornagon, Jr., jail warden of the BJMP male dorm, said that the products of the PDLs are now in display in the said facilities for the public to purchase the quality products for gifts the Yuletide season.
He claimed that for the regular products on display, all the profits will go directly to the PDLs that made the crafts while during special occasions, a portion of the proceeds of the purchased products will be earmarked for the improvement of its multipurpose hall, particularly the provision of air conditioning system, considering the increasing number of stakeholders who are availing of the use of the said facility.
On the other hand, Senior Inspector April Rose Ayangwa, jail warden of the BHMP female dorm, said that proceeds of the sale of the products of the PDLs will be used to sustain the implementation of their home visitation program and the improvement of the exiting livelihood center to cater to the growing requirement of their clients.
She claimed under the female dorm’s home visitation program, the families of PDLs who are identified as indigents will be visited by BJMP personnel and be given gifts, among other basic needs, as part of the extension program of the agency through the assistance of the PDLs who generated the available resources from the proceeds of their own crafts.
Ayangwa underscored the need to continue improving the state of the BHMP’s livelihood center so that visitors and patrons can conveniently transact business in the said area.
Part of the lanterns to be used by the St. Louis University (SLU) students for their lantern parade this year comes from the products of the PDLs who painstakingly worked double time to produce the required number of lanterns in time for the conduct of the said annual event.
Both jail officers called on the public to continue patronizing the products of PDLs year-round to help the PDLs in the provision of their basic needs and the financial requirements of their families as the crafts are of good quality and are at par with the standards of the market.
The BJMP Christmas livelihood fair is an annual activity of both female and male dormitories to showcase the gift and other souvenir items produced by the PDLs to serve as part of their income-generating activities.
Further, individuals and groups with special orders can approach concerned officials of both dorms for them to help the PDLs have a sustainable source of income while detained in the said detention centers.
By Dexter A. See
