Government Service
In October 1999, President Joseph Ejercito Estrada created the Office of the Presidential Adviser for Children’s Affairs. He appointed her to head this office, which gives the children of the poor access to the President’s highest councils.
She organized the First National Summit for Children in Malacañan Palace on October 26, 2000 where government agencies, local government units, industry leaders and non-government organizations signed a declaration of commitment upholding Child 21 – a framework on which to anchor all action plans and strategies relating to children. This declaration was a first in Southeast Asia – a fitting prelude to the United Nations’ World Declaration on the Survival, Protection and Development of Children, which was adopted during the World Summit for Children on September 30, 1990.
She travels nationwide while coordinating the agency’s feeding and educational programs, confirming her commitment to the cause of poor Filipino children. She became especially concerned over the fate of teachers and school children who were taken hostage by the Abu Sayyaf terrorists in 2001. After consultation with the victims themselves, she sought the help of clinical psychologists from Ateneo de Manila and Ateneo de Zamboanga, who soothed the trauma victims and trained their parents in stress management.
In addition to her work for her numerous foundations, in later 2003 she has become spokesperson for the youth-based Kontra Pulitika Movement (KPM) – which champions education, protection of the environment and economic empowerment through livelihood programs.
She has acted in a movie on the life of Luis Taruc, the Kapampangan founder of the Hukbo ng Bayan Laban sa mga Hapon (Hukbalahap). Ka Luis was the protégé of her grandfathers, the Abad Santos brothers. In the film, ‘Anak Pawis’, she portrays her grandmother, Amanda Teopaco.
Read more about this topic: Jamby Madrigal
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