Mayor Dan Lim urged parents to be responsible enough to serve as role model to their children. “Our lives are the real lessons that our children learn as they are growing up,” the mayor declared. Lim issued the call at the start of another school year in the face of economic, social and political challenges confronting the community. The mayor pointed out that under his administration, the city government is doing its share to cushion the economic difficulties by providing freebies for three years now. Living up to Lim's campaign promise in the 2004 elections, his administration has distributed free school uniforms including shoes, school bags and school supplies.
The mayor said he has also ordered the installation of ceiling fans and the construction of as many comfort rooms as possible. Lim however made it clear that the primary responsibility over the children belongs to the parents. “Regardless of what is happening in the community, the responsibility you're your children is yours,” he stressed. Lim said that while the government is doing everything it can to provide a good learning atmosphere for the children, parents play the most important role. “When we were growing up, the boys imitated their fathers while the girls idolized their mothers,” he recalled. These days, he said the role models of the youths are entertainment and sports stars “who are as confused as the youths looking up to them”. Lim said he realized that most of the under-performing students are distracted by family problems and not because they are mentally inferior.
The mayor had ordered teachers to monitor the lowest 20% of each class in the different public schools in the city. He revealed that reason given by most of the pupils for their poor performance are related to problematic families like frequent quarrels between parents, lack of encouragement and support, lack of sleep, hunger and parents' disinterest. “While the first impulse would be to blame poverty, this is not enough reason for parents to neglect their children,” the mayor added. He said this alibi does not hold considering the numerous success stories of people coming from poor families but whose parents cared enough to support them psychologically, emotionally and spiritually. “Parents whose children adopt role models other than them should be concerned, if not ashamed, because it reflects a shortcoming in their relationship,” he added.
