A legislator from Mindanao called on newly-elected barangay officials to make their voices heard in the implementation of critical development projects to ensure they get to meet the priority needs of their respective communities.
Rep. Paolo Duterte of Davao City said with barangay officials at the frontlines of providing basic services to the people, they are in the best position to determine the projects and programs that will have a positive impact in the lives of their constituents.
Thus, their recommendations should be strongly considered in the implementation of government projects, he said.
“With your fresh mandate, you can become instruments of meaningful change in the barangays that you are tasked to serve,” said Duterte, who began his career in government service as a village chief in Barangay Catalunan Grande in Davao City.
“Development projects recommended and initiated by barangay officials ensure that good governance is felt by the people at the grassroots level. The voices of our barangay officials should be heard as they play a key role in being catalysts of development in their respective areas of jurisdiction,” he added.
Duterte recalled that when he was vice mayor of Davao City, he established a consultative forum to encourage barangay officials to be more involved in delivering the needs of their constituents and in lobbying for priority projects in their respective communities.
This strategy of involving barangays in planning and implementing development projects is among the most effective means to combat poverty at the grassroots level, especially in underserved and farflung communities beyond the immediate reach of the national government, Duterte said.
Duterte said he has been pushing for the nationwide implementation of this barangay-driven or community-driven approach to development through House Bill (HB) 500 that he filed last year.
He has also filed other measures meant to recognize the efforts of barangay officials and workers as first responders in governance. These include HB 502 which seeks to provide barangay officials with fixed salaries and other benefits and HB 6557 which aims to provide a magna carta of barangay health workers.
