619 students unaccounted for after Zamboanga siege

ZAMBOANGA CITY, Philippines - The local school division office here has not accounted for 619 primary students who were among those displaced after their schools were destroyed by the Zamboanga siege last year, an official said.

City Schools Division Superintendent Melchor Pedro Natividad said the students were among those children from the affected schools, including Mariki, Rio Hondo and Sta. Barbara, that were destroyed at the height of the conflict caused by the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) rebels under the Misuari faction last September. 

In a briefing held at the city with Mayor Ma. Isabelle Climaco-Salazar, Natividad said out of the 5,113 students as of the June 30 baseline enrollment, the total tracked learners are only 4,509 leaving 619 pupils unaccounted for.

“These 619 students have never been tracked until now despite with our coordination with DSWD (Department of Social Welfare and Development),” Natividad said.

The education official feared that those untracked students might have already left and transferred to other places.

This prompted them to coordinate with the other school divisions and the Department of Education regional office in other areas to monitor the possible presence of the missing students, Natividad said.

Natividad added that from the total number of 4,509 tracked learners, there were only 3,295 students who are attending classes. 

Natividad said efforts are being conducted to reach out to ensure the students can continue their education. Summer classes are being offered to increase their competency to promote them into the next grade level. 

The education official added that some of the displaced students who were tracked down refused to return and participate from other schools that adopted them because they were subjected to bullying.

“Some refused to report because subjected to bullying because they have no clothes for school or were being told they stink because they have not taken bath,” Natividad said.

He said to ensure the affected and displaced students will continue their studies, they deployed mobile teachers who hold house-to-house or tent-to-tent teaching.

“We are going to that extent to ensure their education,” Natividad added.

Meanwhile, Natividad said a number of the conflict-affected students will be graduating and venues have been provided by the division office and the city government for the three destroyed schools.