Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) Secretary Rex Gatchalian on Thursday (Oct. 26) heaped praises on social workers, child psychologists, case managers, and house parents of DSWD-run facilities who continue to make sacrifices in fulfilling daily their tasks of serving the children under their care.

“I stand by our people, our social workers, and our child psychologist, and our case managers, and our care facilities, in no way will they influence the child to say things. These are people who’s been working with the department without any political color or any leaning towards anybody,” Secretary Gatchalian said during the continuation of the Senate hearing on the alleged violations of the childcare facility Gentle Hands, Inc. (GHI).

The Senate Committee on Children, Women, Family Relations and Gender Equality chaired by Senator Risa Hontiveros called for the legislative inquiry following the DSWD’s issuance of a Cease and Desist Order (CDO) on GHI due to allegations of abuse as well as safety issues.

During the hearing, the National Authority for Child Care (NACC), an attached agency of the DSWD, presented a video showing the children from GHI who are currently under the custody of Nayon ng Kabataan, a DSWD facility in Mandaluyong City.

NACC executive director Undersecretary Janella Estrada was the one who presented the video wherein the children from GHI narrated their unfavorable experiences at the hands of some of the employees of the orphanage.

The GHI, through its lawyer, was also allowed to present their own video showing the same children narrating their positive experiences at the Quezon City orphanage.

The Senate committee was told that the NACC video was taken on October 25, or a day before the October 26 hearing while the GHI video was filmed sometime in May this year.

With the two videos showing different messages, Sen. Hontiveros sought the advice of concerned agencies on how to handle such situation wherein she hinted that an independent psychologist may be able to help thresh out this concern.

Secretary Gatchalian immediately responded to Sen. Hontiveros by vouching for the integrity and professionalism of their social workers in DSWD-run childcare facilities.

“Mga dedicated po ‘tong mga social worker, case manager, house parents. I think, I do respect the committee’s direction on getting an independent child psychologist. But I would again be remised by not saying this for the record. The video is there, true, but again, there will be a better explanation to that, but to somehow, not the committee, but to somehow insinuate that our people in the care facilities were teaching them. Hindi ho ‘yon gawain ng mga magigiting naming mga social worker na araw-araw nagsasakripisyo,” the DSWD chief explained.

In the same hearing, social worker Noimee Labaydan from the Nayon ng Kabataan (NK) affirmed that the 86 children from GHI and who are now under the NK custody are well-cared and are already well-adjusted to the routine of the center.

“Based on our assessment, well-adjusted na sila sa routine na meron po kami sa center. Pag sinabi pong well-adjusted ay nakaka-adopt na po sila, senator, sa mga ginagawa naming sa center. Ang atin pong mga bata sa ngayon ay nag-aaral na po sila. Enrolled na po sila sa formal school, sa school na meron po kami sa center,” Labaydan told the Senate committee.

(Based on our assessment, the children are already well-adjusted to the routine of the center. When we say well-adjusted, they can already adopt to the activities of the center. The children are already going to school now. They are enrolled at the formal school that we have at the center.)

Labaydan pointed out that the children are also enrolled in various skills training activities that the Nayon ng Kabataan, located in Mandaluyong City, offers. #