The Department of Justice Action Center (DOJAC), prosecution offices nationwide said it is now ready to receive anti-bullying complaints.

Under this, the DOJ offices may evaluate the complaints, provide appropriate assistance or refer them to the proper agencies depending on the circumstances of each case.

Justice Undersecretary Ian Norman Dato said the initiative is intended to strengthen the government’s response to bullying by making the DOJ’s resources more accessible to victims and their families.

Dato, chairman of the DOJ Law Enforcement Cluster, said (DOJAC) and prosecution offices nationwide can now receive complaints involving bullying following the issuance of a memorandum by Justice Secretary Fredderick Vida.

The measure gives bullying victims and their parents an additional avenue to seek government assistance aside from the schools and the Department of Education (DepEd), which remains primarily responsible for handling such incidents.

The memorandum was signed by Vida after meeting with 18 regional prosecutors in Clark last week, where he stressed the need to provide victims and their parents an avenue to be heard by an appropriate government agency.

“The department order more than anything affords victims and their parents an outlet or a chance to be heard by an appropriate government agency,” Dato said.

He said victims and their parents may still seek assistance from DepEd, which has primary responsibility for addressing and resolving bullying incidents in schools.

Dato said in addition and to lay an additional framework to help curb increasing incidents of anti-bullying, the facilities of the entire DOJ are laid before parents or the victims or parents to ventilate or resolve their complaints.

The memorandum was issued about three weeks ago, Dato said, adding, complaints may be brought before the DOJAC, which has a presence in nine regions, or through the National Prosecution Service (NPS), which has 249 offices across the country.

Dato said the offices within the DOJ that are naturally the recipient of the complaints or have been tasked to receive and evaluate those complaints are the Department of Justice Action Center (DOJAC).

It has presence in nine regions, and the built-in mechanism of the National Prosecution Service, which have 249 offices nationwide.