VICE President and Education Secretary Sara Duterte called on parents to make sure their children are in school and are protected from criminality, drugs and insurgency.

“Since you are already in the communities, I urge you to help explain the importance of keeping children away from the force that will destroy their future such as illegal drugs,” Duterte said during the convention of barangay health workers in Surigao Del Norte.

“Another call is to keep our children away from being seduced and recruited by the New People’s Army,” she added.

Duterte shared the department’s MATATAG agenda in basic education, which hones children to be patriotic and become productive, reliable pillars of nation building.

“Through this, we envision that the Philippines will become a Youthful Nation — or a country that will stand for the future of children,” she said. “ Our children will grow up as individuals who love our country.”