By Sonya Delgado
Officials from the University of Southeastern Philippines (USeP) along with Davao City government officials broke ground for the university’s extension campus in Sitio KDC, Barangay Malabog, Paquibato, an area that was once an insurgency hotbed on Friday, January 10, 2025.
The City Government has provided a P183 million funding for the construction of the USeP-MEC Academic Facility and female dormitory, and other necessary infrastructure such as a footbridge leading to the academic building.
USeP President Dr. Bonifacio Cabales Jr., in a speech during the event, said that the facility will serve as an academic building for the USeP-MEC, which is currently holding classes for 300 students of Bachelor of Science and Entrepreneurship and Bachelor of Science in Agribusiness at Paquibato National High School
Three additional courses – Agriculture, Cultural Studies,and Elementary Education – will be added to the existing courses once the building is finished.
Cabales said that the current third-year students under their initial offered programs will hopefully be able to use the building soon as they target to finish it within the year.
He expressed gratitude to all those who helped in making the project possible, including the city government. He said the project will be a huge help to the community. In 2022, the City Government and USeP signed a Memorandum of Agreement for the Operationalization of USeP-MEC. The purpose of the signing is to provide tertiary education to the communities in Paquibato District, which is considered a geographically isolated area (GIDA).
Peace 911 Focal Atty. Jonah Margarette F. Presto, in a speech, urged everyone to give value to the project because it is the fruit of the labor and cooperation of stakeholders to provide accessible education, which will not only improve the life of one person but the community as a whole.
Davao City Mayor Sebastian Baste Duterte, in a message read by Presto, urged the formation of more partnerships and foster
collaborations as he believes that making education a priority will create a hopeful change, one that will allow the youth to become partners in nation building.
Barangay Malabog Barangay Captain Joselito C. Areja also expressed his gratitude to all the people who made their aspiration of having a local college in the barangay come true. This started with sheer efforts of going to various agencies, meetings, and arrangements from way back in 2017.
Areja said he believes that education is a legacy that they can leave their children and the community. He encouraged the community to have a sense of ownership
of the project and take good care of it.
Ramil Mandiala, a sitio leader from Sitio Bitan, which is about two hours walk from the USeP-MEC site, told Madayaw that the establishment of the college in their barangay was very helpful.
“For us, the Indigenous Peoples of Malabog, Paquibato, having a college such as USeP is a huge help. There are some of us who cannot go to Davao City (centers) because of a lack of budget. I am really thankful that there is a college here in Malabog,” Mandiala said.
The groundbreaking ceremony was witnessed by personnel from city offices, barangay functionaries, and sitio and purok leaders from Malabog.