Cebu City hosts youth congress

CEBU, Philippines - The Cebu City government hosted its first youth congress over the weekend after the creation of the local youth office last month.

At least 580 youth task forces from 72 barangays attended the congress at the South Road Properties last Saturday and at the Crown Regency Hotel in Barangay Guadalupe on Sunday.

The youth task forces replaced the Sangguniang Kabataan with each barangay having at least four.

The task forces have the budget of SK which is 10 percent of the Internal Revenue Allotment of the barangay.

It will take charge the implementation of the projects for the youth.

Cebu City Mayor Tomas Osmeña issued Executive Order 19 on April 16, 2017 creating the Cebu City Local Youth Development Office.

The congress last weekend also serves as the first organizational activity of CCLYDO after its creation.

The activities during the event include Carnival Obstacle Run, Get to Know You, team building, and different presentations.

There were also discussions about Federalism from the officials of the Department of Interior and Local Government.

“Because as youth we need to know what will be happening to our Philippines in the next few years. So we need to know what is Federalism,” said CCLYDO officer Jess Anthony Dela Cruz.

There were also discussions about illegal drugs by the Cebu City Office for Substance Abuse Prevention (COSAP). During the activity, task force members had the chance to engage each other by proposing programs to be implemented in their respective barangay.

"I joined, for me, to be aware of the present issues that our city is facing right now, especially the drug cases, premarital sex, child labor and other,” said Bryll King, a member of the task force from Barangay Poblacion Pardo. The group is expected to have a monthly meeting starting next month.

"We will empower the youth because the youth have the potentials and skills needed in order to achieve better leadership and service to the constituents," Dela Cruz said. — Charlene Cobol (FREEMAN)