LEGAZPI CITY – In celebration of National Women’s Month, the Sorsogon City District Jail distributes crinkles and ube pandesal to all inmates especially to women and senior citizens of the said facility, Tuesday, March 14.
The said products were purchased from the Legazpi City Jail under their bakery livelihood program where the persons deprived of liberty (PDL) from the said facility manufactured the products themselves.
The aim of the initiative is not only to give importance to Women’s Month, but also to support their products.
“Yung aim talaga namin diyan is to help both Legazpi and Sorsogon City District Jails na mga PDL. Ang pinaka-purpose n’on pagka-nagbili kami ng produkto ng Legazpi, ang matutulungan n’on is the PDL ng Legazpi City Jail na kung saan madadagdagan yung funds nila sa Welfare and Development Program, “ Grace Redrico, Unit Help Desk Officer, explained in an interview with Bicol.PH.
“(And) at the same time, yung livelihood baga nila for bakery. Instead na bibili kami sa labas, sa kanila na kami bibili. Bale, jail to jail, tapos PDL to PDL yung beneficiary.”
Redrico said that the recipients of the products didn’t expect that the baked goods they received were made by other PDLs.
“They are so happy with receiving the crinkles items and syempre nagulat sila. Syempre nakakulong sila, hindi nila expected na kapwa PDL din nila yung gumawa ng ganong crinkles,” Redrico said.
The said initiative was made possible because of anonymous donations solicited by the Unit Help Desk Office of the said facility.
Urges public to patronize PDL-made products
The livelihood programs that the Sorsogon City District Jail offered to PDLs are beads-making, basket-making, rug-making, and painting.
“Itong livelihood program nila, ito yung pinagkukuhanan nila ng pangbili nila ng mga basic needs nila, at the same time, ito din naman yung pinapadala nila sa mga family nila even they are behind bars,” Redrico said.
The PDLs produce keychains, bags, and wallets by meticulously conjoining and forming the beads into what products they wanted to make.
They make large baskets which JO1 John Derick Apuli, Community Relations Officer of the said facility, said are to be exported to Canada.
Rug-making and painting, on the other hand, is usually done by women because the job is only light and not straining to muscles.
As a way to help PDLs, Redrico urges everyone to patronize the products made by the PDLs themselves.
“Di niyo ‘to basta-basta makikita sa mall na mga bags. Tapos ako lang naman, ina-assist ko sila about the design, the quality, but then, sila din naman talaga ang gumagawa nito,” Redrico plugged.
Currently, Redrico said that they just market their products, especially the beads-made products, by making referrals.
(If you are interested in their products, do not hesitate to message the Facebook account of Sorsogon DistrictCity Jail, and enquire. #NakabakalKaNaNakatabangKaPa.) | via Arvie Bediones
Photos: Sorsogon City District Jail and Joshua Santos