DAVAO CITY – The Office of the Participatory Governance and the different chapters of the Kilusang Pagbabago kicked off Friday the Biyaya ng Pagbabago caravan in Ifugao, Mountain Province and will end in Davao City on December 9.
Undersecretary Joselito Libres said the caravan brings government services and programs to the people.
Biyaya, which means gift, is part of the vision of the Duterte administration for greater people participation for economic inclusivity and foster participation in governance.
Biyaya ng Pagbabago is spearheaded by the Office of Cabinet Secretary Leoncio Evasco, who heads 12 agencies, such as the Philippine Coconut Authority, National Housing Authority, among others.
The caravan involves a multi-sectoral and multi-agency service. It brings programs to the grassroots so that people know how to access them, claim the benefits of government programs especially livelihood.
"If people know how to access the different programs of the government especially those in the rural communities, they will be liberated from poverty," Libres said.
“The President is persistent in addressing the issue of poverty,” he added.
The Biyaya ng Pagbabago partners with Kilusang Pagbabago (KP) in delivering the government programs.
Alexander “Rocky” Balili, lead convenor of KP, said KP is a mass convergence of people and organizations from the grassroots, Indigenous Peoples and the Urban Poor. KP is more known as support groups of President Rodrigo Duterte’s campaign against illegal drugs, criminality, corruption, and poverty.
“It is an organized sector affected by poverty. We train people on how to access government programs,” Balili said during the Kapihan sa PIA Friday.
Balili said a nation is mature if people are more educated and successful if people are active in claiming government programs.
He, however, admitted educating and teaching the people to claim government programs require hard work.
But Libres and Balili said the administration achieved first steps in fulfilling campaign commitment that would liberate people from poverty.
Balili hinted at the President’s fight against corruption by minimizing service delivery mechanism; implementing the 72-hour period of processing documents; the Lingap program of Davao is now offered to indigent families nationwide; and the download of projects are done directly to the people instead of the local government units.
In previous administration projects were downloaded through LGUs that these have been politicized and identification of beneficiaries were selective.
Libres said the 8888 complaints hotline has become effective in terms of minimizing corruption and hastening implementation of programs and projects.
Libres, however, clarified programs are not only under the agencies under the Office of the Cabinet Secretary but, there are many being implemented by government agencies that should reach targeted beneficiaries. (Lilian C. Mellejor/PNA)
