City orders children's NGO to stop soliciting Funds

The Cebu City Council wants the Children of Joy Foundation, Inc. to stop soliciting funds because it is not an accredited non-governmental organization of the city government.

In a resolution approved during its regular session last week, the city council ordered the said foundation to remove the coin banks it placed in establishments all over the city as well as stop the deployment of children who are soliciting money.

The body found out from the Cebu City Commission for the Welfare and Protection of Children (CCCWPC) during a meeting held last October 6 that the said foundation has been soliciting money without a permit from the city.

Although there were attempts from the said foundation to qualify as an accredited NGO of the city government by sending its representative to CCCWPC in three separate occasions, it submitted wrong documents in relation to its application for accreditation.

Despite an advisory letter sent to them by the CCCWPC, the foundation has continuously placed its coin banks without proper permits, according to councilor Gerardo Carillo who is the author of the proposed measure and is the action officer of CCCWPC.

The city council has directed the foundation to pull out the coin banks it distributed to various establishments in the city.

The city's Squatters Prevention, Encroachment and Elimination Division (Speed) has been tasked to check if the council's directive has been complied with. - Cristina C. Birondo