Scholarship Grants for Barangay Officials Pushed

The Sangguniang Panlalawigan (SP) of Agusan del Norte recently asked the Committee on Education of the House of Senate and House of Representatives to ensure the fund allocation of the Scholarship Grants Program for barangay officials and their beneficiaries.

The SP passed and approved a resolution requesting the House of Congress for the inclusion of fund allocation in the General Appropriations Act for the sustainable implementation of the said scholarship grants as provided for under Section 393 B (4) of RA 7160 or the Local Government Code of 1991. 


Pursuant to Section 393 B (4) of RA 7160, it mandated that the punong barangay, the sangguniang barangay members, the barangay treasurer, the barangay secretary and their legitimate dependent children, and the sangguniang kabataan officials attending state universities or colleges (SUCs) shall be exempted during their incumbency from paying tuition to the schools they enrolled.


In adherence to the said provision, the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) issued Memorandum Order Nos. 62-1997 and 15-2009 to provide guidelines for all SUCs on the said scholarship grant.


However, a problem ensued as the scholarship program is not honored by SUCs because there is no assurance of fund allocation from the national government and there is no existing clear-cut mechanism as to where they can obtain the payments or reimbursements of the tuition or matriculation fees incurred by the beneficiaries. 


The Sangguniang Panlalawigan of Davao Oriental and Marinduque expressed the same concerns on the matter and were soliciting the support from the SP of Agusan del Norte to request the national government to adopt a clear-cut mechanism that will ensure the fund allocation of the program and payment to SUCs. 


The SP of Agusan del Norte strongly supported the move and immediately passed and approved a resolution requesting the House of Congress to address the said problem. (Original Post: Agnor SP backs scholarship grants for barangay officials)

DSWD Setting-up Barangay Complaint Desk for 'Pantawid' Program

To address the problems of the members of the Pantawid Pamilya Pilipino Program (4Ps), the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) region 2 has mandated all Municipal Advisory Councils (MACs) to establish Barangay Complaint Desk in every Pantawid area.

Maricel Asejo, information officer, said since the implementation of 4Ps, they have been receiving several complaints related to the program and the practices of the beneficiaries.

“The establishment of the complaint desk will facilitate immediate action on every complaint lodge by the beneficiaries and will ensure that all concerns of the beneficiaries will be heard and given due action,” Asejo said.

She also said that one of the developments in the implementation of the program is the empowerment of all beneficiaries and to develop good  ties among family recipients.

She said most of the complaints they received include gender -related issues like those of husbands dominating their wives.

“We are into gender sensitivity and equality promotions in the community,” Asejo said.

Aside from this, she also mentioned the involvement of some beneficiaries to vices like gambling and  family conflicts. "These are examples of  cases brought to the attention of the advisory council," she added.

The complaint desk is composed of member-representatives from the Municipal Local Government Office, Municipal Social Welfare and Development, Punong Barangay, Municipal Link and the Parent Leader. (PIA)

Rep. Leni Robredo Prioritizes Barangay Development

                                  Rep. Leni Robredo                Google Photo      

Several bills have been filed in the House of Representatives seeking to provide more opportunities for the barangays to grow and serve their constituents well.

This was bared by Camarines Sur’s Third District Rep. Leni Robredo, speaking during the opening program of the lst Children’s Summit on Health sponsored by the Dagupan City government, Department of Education (DepEd) and Department of Health (DOH) at CSI Stadia in Dagupan City, Tuesday.

Robredo, the Liberal Party vice presidential candidate in the coming election, said foremost of these bills is the bill institutionalizing the Bottom Up Budgeting (BUB) which now benefits municipalities and cities throughout the country.

Addressing her speech to barangay captains of Dagupan who also graced the Children’s Summit, Robredo said BUB, which was initiated by her late husband, Jesse Robredo when he was the secretary of the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG), must be institutionalized to ensure its continuity even when a new administration takes over.

In the same manner, she also filed a bill seeking to institutionalize the Pantawid Pamilya Pilipino Program (4Ps) to ensure that the next succeeding administration will continue this novel program that now benefits the most marginalized sector of the society in the Philippines.

Robredo said that under the BUB, only municipalities and cities are getting from P15 million to P20 million projects each from the national government.

These projects were identified by the people in these localities through their respective People’s Organizations.

But in 2017, she said, all barangays throughout the country will also get P1 million worth of BUB projects each year which their people themselves will also identify.

Explaining that the barangays are close to her heart as its residents worked with her when her late husband was mayor of Naga City, Robredo said bared that a Barangay Reform Bill has been filed in Congress which she co-authored.

The bill, among others, she said, seeks to extend the term of office of barangay officials from three years to five years.

Saying that three years is too short for barangay officials and even their appointees to perform the services that they vowed to do to their constituents, Robredo assured that once this bill is passed into law, they will have two additional years to stay in their posts.

She was cheered by barangay officials led by Lino Fernandez and Bryan Kua when she said the term of office of barangay captains and councilmen need to be extended in order to bring genuine reforms in all villages throughout the country.

The congresswoman said with only three years for the new officials to rule, the barangay health workers (BHW) will have to be replaced too if another barangay captain comes in, badly affecting the health programs in the barangays.

She said she proposed in that bill that the national government be the one to bankroll the salaries of the Barangay Health Workers and other volunteer workers as well as the barangay tanod.

This will ensure, she said, that the salaries of these barangay workers will be uniform throughout the country.

Robredo also proposed that the capability building seminars for barangay officials be also shouldered by the national government and not by the village any more to conserve their limited budgets.

Robredo noted that the salaries of these workers vary in various barangays throughout the country depending on their classification and financial capabilities.

However if the bill becomes a law, there will be the same level of pay for all BHWs and other volunteers as well as the barangay tanod nationwide.

The bill, she said, in fact, institutionalizes a pension system for all barangay health workers who after completing nine years of continuous service must be entitled to a minimum pension as a reward for their dedicated services. (Mindanao Daily News)

Bottom-up Budgeting at the Barangay Level

Standing true to its slogan “Budget ng Bayan sa Kamay ng Taumbayan”, Bottom-up Budgeting (BuB) is set to be implemented at the barangay level soon.

Secretary Mel Senen S. Sarmiento of the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) said that Barangay BuB will empower both barangays and citizens by involving them in deciding what projects they need thereby promoting people’s participation and accountability in government.

The impact of such project, Sarmiento said, is that by providing some means to the barangays for them to be able to implement projects on their own, they will be taught how to go about following procurement law, following the budget law and regulations, and improving their governance at the barangay level.

“This is part of making good governance directly seen, felt and benefited by Filipinos in their communities,” he added.

At present, BUB is being implemented at the city and municipal levels.

Launched in 2012, BuB is a program that strengthens participation in national budget formulation and project implementation. Before BuB, decisions were made at the top. Now, local communities with their local government units (LGUs) are given the power to decide on what priority projects should be implemented in their areas.

This December, the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) created a Technical Working Group (TWG) for the pre-implementation phase of Barangay BuB in 2017. This is anchored on the principle that barangays should be empowered and this is to encourage the active participation of the CSOs in the budgeting process. The TWG will craft the implementing guidelines of Barangay BuB.

Richard L. Villacorte, Project Manager of the DILG BuB Project Management Office, said that in reference to the present form of BuB whose budget is endowed on a per city and municipality basis, Barangay BuB will be dealing with barangays themselves. It will not pass through the municipal government or provincial government, but will be directly downloaded from the national government to the barangay level, he added.

“When we say bottom-up budgeting, the barangay is more bottom, more grassroot than the municipal civil society organizations (CSOs),” he said.

Atty. Edmund R. Abesamis, National President of the Liga ng mga Barangay sa Pilipinas, said, “This is a realization of what the Liga has been pushing for, that is empowerment of barangays. Under the Barangay BuB, the capabilities of barangays to implement projects funded by the national government will take place already.”

Abesamis said that the Liga ng mga Barangay sa Pilipinas is being consulted for the preparation of implementing Barangay BuB and that they are fully cooperating for the smooth and glitch-free execution of this much sought after project. (Original Post Title: Bottom-up Budgeting going more grassroot at barangay-level)

Editor's Notes: I hope and pray that this will usher in the beginning of a new era when communities become more empowered in shaping their own fiscal destinies - to be free from the manipulations of some people at the top for their own political agendas.  What do you think? 

Best Lupon in the Country from Barangay in Southern Leyte

 By Mark L. Rimas

Barangay Hingatungan of Silago, Southern Leyte, was recently selected the National Champion for barangays among 4th to 6th class municipalities in the 2014 Lupong Tagamapayapa Incentives Award held at the Marriott Hotel last September 28.

Punong Barangay Alberto M. Orias who represented the barangay received the cash prize of 300,000 pesos and a trophy. This was the fourth time Hingatungan has won the awardhaving won it in 2001, 2007, 2012 and 2014.

A National Awards Committee composed of officials from the Department of Interior and Local Government, Department of Justice, Supreme Court, National Police Commission and Liga ng mga Barangay chose the winners from lupons nationwide based on the barangay Lupon’s Efficiency in Operations, Effectiveness in obtaining the Objectives of the program; and Creativity and Resourcefulness of the Lupong Tagapamayapa.

"The Lupong Tagapamayapa is a big help in facilitating the speedy administration of justice in the barangays and has also been a big help to our courts and has saved the government billions of pesos," according to DILG Secretary Mel Senen Sarmiento. (Reposted from Southern Leyte Times, Oct.2, 2015 as Silago Barangay has Best Lupon in the Country)