By Edison delos Angeles
Philippine Daily Inquirer
First Posted 23:55:00 05/06/2011
CEBU CITY, Philippines—He had spent four years in jail on a rape charge that was eventually dismissed, but Bryan Fernandez never let go of his dream of getting a college degree.
When he was finally freed, Fernandez went to the capitol to apply for a scholarship offered to former detainees of the Cebu Provincial Detention and Rehabilitation Center (CPDRC).
“Even when in jail, I was already telling myself that I need to pursue my studies and get a degree not just for the sake of pasikat but also for my family because I did not come from a rich family,†he tells the Inquirer.
His efforts paid off. On March 27, the 28-year-old native of Dumanjug town in Cebu graduated—with honors—with a degree of Bachelor of Science in Elementary Education from Cebu Normal University (CNU).
Fernandez dedicates his accomplishment to his grandmother, Concepcion, who went up on stage and placed his medal around his neck. “She is already very old and I wanted her to witness my graduation,†he says.
Fernandez grew up with his mother and grandmother after his father left him when he was an infant. He never knew his father.
He was a sophomore education student of CNU when he was accused of rape in 2000.
“When I knew I had a case (filed against me), I stopped going to school for two years until such time that a warrant of arrest was issued by court,†he explains.
Policemen went to his house in Dumanjug town in February 2002 to serve the warrant. He didn’t resist arrest but he insisted that he was innocent.
Fernandez was detained at the CPDRC. “It’s all a matter of accepting that I was in jail,†he explains of his life in prison.
To let time pass, he was one of the facility’s lay ministers who were teaching catechism in coordination with the Cebu Archdiocesan Prison Apostolate Affairs.
When they learned that he was a college student, the jail officials requested him to perform administrative tasks, including supervising a soap-making project. He also had some chores, such as cooking.
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