Tuguegarao City, Cagayan- More
than 500 officers and key members of some 58 agrarian reform organizations in
the province of Cagayan attended an orientation on Participatory Governance sometime
last November, 2017 as a part of the activities conducted during the 2017 Agrarian
Reform Beneficiaries Organizations (ARBO) Summit, peoples’ participation in
nation building being one of the key topics during the gathering. The orientation was
conducted by Mr Nathaniel Gumangan, PRO of the Kilusang Pagbabago in Cagayan Valley Region (Region 02). Also present during the orientation were PARCCOM member Napoleon Baltazar and Mr. Loreto Batara, Community Administrative Officer V of the Office of Participatory Governance (OPG) in Malacanang, Manila.
Participatory governance is a
decision-making process that encourages the involvement of more farmers and
other stakeholders who chip-in more ideas and inputs to come up with common decisions
that fulfill the needs or desire of the majority. The outcome of any decision under
this process is generally accepted and facilitates the smoother implementation
of a project or program.
The Kilusang Pagbabago is a
grassroots-based movement intended to be the eyes of the Duterte administration
in ensuring that the delivery of government developmental interventions such as
village-level programs and projects truly benefit the masses. It is also the
partner of the Duterte administration in pursuing its rural development efforts,
specifically, the war against poverty, criminality, and any form of graft and
corruption in government.
The orientation also discussed
the important provisions of Malacanang Executive Order No. 9, Series of 2016 regarding the creation of the Office of Participatory Governance (OPG) and its
functions, such as: (a) Promote and ensure the direct participation of various stakeholders
in the crafting and formulation of policies and programs to address concerns at
the grassroots level; (b) Initiate programs and projects that will facilitate
citizen empowerment and participation in governance at the national, regional
and local levels; and (c) Perform such other functions as may be necessary to
achieve the above stated goals of the OPG as directed by the CabinetSecretary.
The Kilusang Pagbabago aims to be
a people’s movement that would serve as President Duterte’s partner for change
by serving as a watchdog that will fight corruption and ensure that government
did not wander from a pro-people agenda. It was also explained to the
participants how they can freely utilize the power of the Dial 8888 hotline
where the public can file complaints against government officials/offices.
It was restated that citizens in
their communities can participate in governance by being informed about issues
affecting their quality of life directly and bringing their
concerns to the government as guaranteed by the Philippine Constitution.
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| Author with Nap Baltazar, Program Director and Nath Gumangan, Public Relations Officer, Kilusang Pagbabago-Cagayan Valley LOI. |
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| More that 500 ARB cooperative/organization officers and key members from Cagayan province attended the Orientation on Participatory Governance facilitated by Kilusang Pagbabago-Cagayan Valley LOI. |
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| Interfacing with ARB Cooperative leaders on specific issues on participatory governance. |
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| Message from Larry Batarra, CAO V, Office of Participatory Governance, Malacanang |
