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Philippines media covers Goducate Training Cente, Iloilo, Philippines

Philippines TV Station ABS-CBN interviewed Governor Arthur Defensor of Iloilo during his recent visit to Goducate Training Center last week.

ABS-CBN interviews Gov. Defensor
ABS-CBN interviews Gov. Defensor

Paul Choo, Founder of Goducate, was also interviewed. The telecast of these interviews were televised on that same afternooon (Sept 10) on ABS-CBN local new

The local Iloilo paper, Panay News (Sept 11, 2010) wrote the following article:

31 ID, NON-PROFIT GROUP HELPS POOR THROUGH MEDICAL MISSION poor thru medical mission

By JEZZA NEPOMOCENO

SAN MIGUEL, Iloilo – The Philippine Army’s 3rd Infantry Division (3ID) and GODUCATE (Go and Educate), a Singapore-based non-profit organization, conducted a medical mission yesterday, catering to about 500 poor residents of Brgy. Santo Angel here.


Aside from the free medical checkup and medicines, the groups also gave free dental operation and circumcision. The activity was in line with GODUCATE’s objective of “helping poor Asians help themselves.”

According to Maj. John Andrada, acting Civil Military Operation Battalion commander, the 3ID provided some of the doctors and dentists needed for the medical mission. Dr. Paul Chu, president of GODUCATE, said Brgy. Santo Angel will become the “breeding ground” of more development activities, being host to the first GODUCATE campsite in the Philippines.

“This (campsite) is not for profit but for community development,” said Chu.

Chu envisions that foreign nationals from other Asian countries will soon come here for their livelihood trainings and literacy programs, which involves introducing modern technology to attain sustainable
development.

Gov. Arthur Defensor Sr. who graced the activity lauded the organizers and vowed to support the organization’s projects and development programs for the Ilonggos.

Putting the 1.8-hectare GODUCATE campsite in a “sleepy barangay” here was an ambitious project, Defensor said.

But there is nothing impossible if we are committed and determined to achieve such an ambition, he added.

Defensor said the provincial government will rehabilitate the rough roads toward the campsite and will create a “shortcut” route from the site to the national road.

GODUCATE operates in seven Asians countries — Singapore, Philippines, India, China, Cambodia, Indonesia and Malaysia./PN

(pl note that the area of the training center is 11.2 hectares and not 1.8 hectares as reported in this article)

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Goducate at ActivAid 2010 Conference

Goducate was a part of ActivAid’s inaugural conference held last Saturday at the National University of Singapore. Goducate founder Paul Choo led one of the 15 workshops, while the co-founders and other volunteers manned the Goducate booth in the exhibition area.

ActivAid is a conference targeted at health-care students in Singapore and elsewhere to educate them about humanitarian efforts and to spur them into volunteering for such efforts. The conference is organized jointly by the National University of Singapore Medical Society and by Healthcare Expeditions International (HealthEx), a Singapore-based non-governmental organization that identifies, develops, and executes expeditions that health-care students can join to help the needy in various countries. The plan is for ActivAid conferences to be held annually.

Paul Choo asking a keynote speaker a question
Paul Choo asking a keynote speaker a question


For many people, going on a humanitarian expedition is a one-off affair, an experience of a lifetime with wonderful photo-opportunities, but then what? This kind of involvement means much effort and organization for the people on the ground in the host country and much disruption to their work, but in the long run makes little difference to the needy people out there. To drive home this point, the theme for this year’s conference was Sustainability Issues Facing Student Volunteers. Participants thus not only learnt what goes into humanitarian missions, but they were also challenged to think about how, after their return home, they can keep up the good work.

The topic for Paul Choo’s workshop was that merely doling out help to the needy is not charity. Doing so and doing things for them robs them of their dignity and self-worth and makes them overdependent on others, while giving the helpers a false sense of superiority. True, sustainable, charity is helping the needy to help themselves.