CEBU CITY, Cebu — in a bid to address bullying cases that still occur despite the Department of Education (DepEd)’s efforts in advocating the anti-bullying campaign, DepEd Central Visayas (DepEd-7) director Salustiano Jimenez is calling on public and private schools in the region to ensure that their policies are all “child-friendly”.

This, Jimenez stressed, is to address the bullying cases that have lately been increasing as based on reports from several schools in Central Visayas, particularly in Cebu, Bohol and Negros Oriental.

The DepEd regional director, though, did not give specifics on the number of bullying incidents in the schools.

Usually, Jimenez added, it is often that the teachers were the ones to report about the bullying which they sent to the regional office and the assigned lawyer from the regional office would then handle the case or situation.

“Because of that, our legal division, ang nag-conduct ng mga advocacy at orientation althroughout Central Visayas to make sure that ang aming mga divisions sa schools ay may kapabilidad sa pag-handle sa mga (kaso ng) bullying,” he clarified even as he gave assurances that every case reported is catered and managed.

The DepEd official also claimed that they have likewise made teachers aware on how to properly handle situations involving bullying.

In ending, Jimenez also called on all the parents in the region that whenever they notice a sudden change in their children’s behavior or acts that would relate to bullying, they must not be afraid to report it to DepEd’s division and regional offices.

"This is not to sensationalize the situation but this is for the authorities to resolve the matter to avoid it happening again," he concluded.

Based on findings of the 2022 Program for International Student Assessment (PISA) report, one in three Filipino students experiences bullying at school with 43 percent of girls and 53 percent of boys facing bullying incidents several times a month.