A school should be a child’s second home, a place where dreams are nurtured, friendships are formed, and futures begin. Yet in recent times, heartbreaking stories of bullying, school violence, cyber abuse, and even campus shootings have shaken parents across our country. Every tragic headline reminds us that protecting our children cannot wait until another incident happens.

As a mother and as chairperson of the Committee on Education of the Sangguniang Panlungsod of Las Piñas, I believe that every child deserves to walk through the school gates feeling safe, respected and valued.

That is why on 14 July, I introduced the Las Piñas Safe Schools and Child Protection Ordinance of 2026, a comprehensive measure designed to strengthen the protection of our students, promote mental wellness, prevent violence, and encourage restorative interventions to help young people heal, learn and grow.

This ordinance is not simply about imposing rules. It is about creating a culture of care.

Generosity is often associated with giving money and material things. But one of the greatest gifts we can ever give a child is safety. We become generous whenever we choose to listen to a struggling student, defend a child being bullied, comfort someone who feels alone, or guide a young person who has lost direction.

I remember stories of teachers who quietly purchased school supplies for children whose parents could not afford notebooks. Guidance counselors who stayed beyond office hours to listen to a student overwhelmed by anxiety. Classmates who welcomed a transfer student sitting alone during lunch. These simple acts of kindness rarely make the headlines, but they change lives.

Our ordinance builds upon these everyday acts of compassion.

It institutionalizes school-based mental health and psychosocial support, strengthens anti-bullying mechanisms, establishes confidential reporting systems, promotes responsible digital citizenship, creates behavioral intervention programs, encourages family participation, and brings together schools, parents, barangays, law enforcement, health professionals, youth leaders, faith-based organizations and civil society in one coordinated effort to protect every learner.

Perhaps its most important principle is that prevention is always better than punishment.

Children who struggle with anger, fear, trauma or emotional distress often need guidance before discipline. When intervention comes early, lives can be redirected before mistakes become tragedies.

Protecting the children is never the responsibility of schools alone. Parents must listen more. Communities must become more watchful. Friends must speak up instead of remaining silent. Public servants must continue crafting laws that respond to today’s realities, especially in a world where bullying and violence now extend beyond classrooms into the digital space.

A safe school is not created by walls or security cameras alone. It is built by compassionate teachers, responsible parents, caring classmates, vigilant communities, and leaders who refuse to ignore the warning signs.

If this ordinance succeeds, its greatest achievement will not be measured by the number of meetings conducted or reports submitted. It will be measured by quieter classrooms where respect replaces fear, by children who feel heard and not ignored, and by parents who send their sons and daughters to school with greater peace of mind.

Our vision is simple yet profound: every child in Las Piñas should be free to learn, dream, laugh and discover their potential without fear.

Because when we protect one child, we strengthen one family. When we strengthen families, we build stronger communities. And when a city chooses to stand beside its children, it secures a brighter future for generations to come.

This is the kind of Las Piñas we continue to build, one generous heart at a time.

The Bible reminds us in Proverbs 31:8-9: “Speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves, for the rights of all who are destitute. Speak up and judge fairly; defend the rights of the poor and needy.”