Despite the tight schedule for the start of Brigada Eskwela on Monday, President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. made time to visit a primary school in Malolos, Bulacan, for the annual school cleanup drive, Brigada Eskwela, where he shared some laughs.

During the kickoff of Brigada Eskwela activities at the Barihan Elementary School in Malolos City, President Marcos met young Lhiana Cabrera, who will enter first grade when classes resume next week.

While inspecting one of the classrooms, the President went over to a table where a group of teachers and pupils, including Lhiana, were preparing learning materials with pictures of animals.

President Marcos asked Lhiana to identify the picture of an animal in front of her, to which she correctly answered “Octopus!” prompting the Chief Executive to say, “Matalino ka nga, puwede kang maging teacher!”

President Marcos was getting ready to move to the following table when Cabrera looked up and in her tiny voice, remarked, “Gusto kong maging pulis!”

Chuckling, the President lingered and playfully asked, “Bakit, siga ka ba?” while striking a muscle-flexing pose in front of the small girl.

As the exchange drew laughs from those around, President Marcos reminded the girl to study hard to fulfill her dreams.

At another table, students raised printed smiley faces when the President asked what their current mood was. The President picked one of the smiley faces from the table and said, “Eh di ako rin ganito.”

The President also interacted with 16 newly-hired teachers who will be assigned to different parts of Malolos on June 16.

Upon arriving outside the Barihan Elementary School around 9 a.m., the President was welcomed by residents chanting, “BBM! BBM! BBM!”

The residents cheered when President Marcos lifted a small boy as he greeted them.

As he entered the school grounds, President Marcos greeted parents who were repainting school chairs.

The President visited all four classrooms of the small school and accommodated all requests from teachers for “selfie” photos.

Some teachers afterwards compared their selfies to see which ones stood closest to the President.

On the new blackboard that President Marcos installed together with his son William Vinny and Department of Education Secretary Edgardo Angara in one of the classrooms, the Chief Executive wrote with a chalk: “Welcome back to school! Study hard, kids” then signed the message. | PND