By Boy Pernia and Jamie Villamor

PASIG CITY. – Rep. Erico B. Aumentado has signed a memorandum of agreement with the Department of Education and the National Development Support Command (NADESCOM) for the construction of ten environmental friendly two-classroom schoolbuildings in the 2 nd district of Bohol. The MOA involves P 11,000,000.00 as construction cost where DepEd and the solon will contribute P5.5 million each for the initial schoolbuildings with NADESCOM as implementing agency. Signatories to the MOA are Usec. Francisco M. Varela of DepEd, Maj. Gen. Carlos B. Holganza of NADESCOM and Aumentado. The signing ceremony took place at the DepEd Central Office in this city where the parties vowed to work together to help solve the acute classroom and equipment shortage in the district. Under the MOA, the schoolbuildings will have the following main features: a concrete standard 63-square meter classroom, toilet, electricity, blackboards, steel trusses, steel window grill, heat insulator, gutter and downspouts, termite treatment, entire edifice painting and an 8,000-liter rain collector or innovative rain water harvesting system (IRHS) to insure water for its classroom toilet and school garden needs.

The schools to be constructed are for Nocnocan Elementary School in Nocnocan island in Talibon; Ubay National Science High School and Tubog Integrated School in Ubay; Basiao High School, Gaus High School and Bonbonon High School in President Garcia; San Jose Elementary School, Hagbuyo Elementary School and Caluasan Elementary School in San Miguel; and Cuaming High School in Cuaming island in Inabanga. The schools benefited by the MOA are classified as black and red in the basic education information listing as updated. The next group of schoolbuildings under the Aumentado, DepEd and NADESCOM convergence strategy will prioritize also the black category for newly opened schools and red for higher ration of enrollment versus classrooms available in the school. It will be recalled that the legislator initiated the convergence strategy in the construction of schoolbuildings with DepEd and NADESCOM 53 rd Engineer Support Battalion during his stint as governor. Some 68 two- classroom schoolbuildings were constructed including those in NPA territories by the military engineers which was part of the Aumentado and military strategy to win the battle against the communist insurgency in Bohol. The province was declared insurgency free by the Department of National Defense and the Philippine National Police on February 11, 2011 at the Kauban sa Reforma Bayanihan Center inauguration in Remedios, Davao town.