As a child rights’ campaign organization, the Preda Foundation has petitioned the Supreme Court to establish a special children’s court in each region. In such a court, there will be continuous hearings with no postponements.
At present, some dodgy judges, with no love for justice except allegedly for generous considerations, allow endless postponements in child abuse cases for years to cause witness fatigue and compel the victims to give up. As a result, cases are dismissed and the rapists go free.
A bent judge may missend subpoenas so the victim does not attend the hearing and the judge promptly dismisses the case against the rapist. This happened to one of our Preda children recently. We will protest and appeal it to the court administrator yet again, then go public and denounce the practice.
In the Preda home for girls, there are 13 staff members, including social workers, therapists and facilitators, implementing legal action, letting the girls undergo therapy and helping them recover. Eighty-three children were admitted in 2025 alone.
The home’s therapeutic program helps and empowers the children, and they were able to testify against their abusers and have them convicted. The number of convictions made possible by good and true judges in 2024 was 24. Despite the trauma they suffered, the children, now recovered, go to school and earn high grades.
Preda’s home for children at risk is in a beautiful farm in Nagbayan, Castillejos, Zambales. This home is for street children aged 15 and younger. They have no legal case but need guidance and support. It was started in Olongapo City in 1974 and later moved to Nagbayan. It now has a team of nine composed of therapists, facilitators and social workers.
In 2025, 64 boys were given assistance to overcome childhood traumas via the emotional release therapy. They had value formation and formal and informal learning by the Preda team. There are currently 27 boys in the Preda home training program.
The Preda home for boys in Cebu, which opened in 2018, is located by the sea. There, the boys can swim, play basketball, and overcome their many problems in a supportive setting. The home is very successful for young people aged 15 and older who were brought there from Operation Second Chance and other government-run detention centers. They are referred to Preda by judges.
There is an average of 40 boys in the home in 2025. The program has the trust of judges in Cebu, as it is able to keep 90 percent of the boys in care with few escapees, although the Preda home is an open center, not a prison.
It has a positive, friendly atmosphere and family-like culture. Many of the boys have successfully passed their alternative learning system examinations. With trained therapists and emotional release therapy, they are able to express the pent-up anger and frustration they feel from what they suffered.
Once free of that burden and healed, their cases are dismissed. They are released by the judge and their record is expunged. They can start a new life, are reintegrated into their respective families, and continue to get help through the Preda aftercare program.
Preda hopes to set up a home for abused girls in Cebu and is looking for a farm lot in a secluded area of about 2.5 hectares in the Liloan-Danao area. If anyone is aware of a suitable land area, please contact Preda Foundation President Francis Bermido Jr. at fbermido@gmail.com./PN
