“Transparency and accountability are watchwords of Robredo’s style of governance.”
Even with election day less than two weeks away, there are still many voters who are undecided and are looking for ‘a sign’ to help them make a decision.
In terms of national candidates, there are those that have managed to dominate the surveys by dint of big-budget social media and promotional campaigns. But on the flip side, there is the campaign of Vice President Leni Robredo, whose presidential bid is aided by donations and a spontaneous outpouring of grassroots support which has not been seen before.
The massive kakampink rallies (where people stay for hours and do not leave in the middle of the candidates’ speeches), the tarps and other materials made and printed at the people’s own expense, the bayanihan donations of food and other necessities, point to sincere support on the part of the people that never required monetary return. “Hindi kami bayad!”
Why Leni? The ‘whys’ have been shared on the internet for months – her educational attainments, her track record of government service, her accomplishments in her various positions and jobs, point to her qualifications for the job of ‘healing and recovery’ president. Most of all, and perhaps the most compelling of all the reasons to vote for her, is the transparency with which she manages her affairs.
Here’s the story of one volunteer, ‘Tina,’ who told this story on social media. Last December, she said she gathered Typhoon Odette donations from her friends and family. She took the groceries she purchased to the Leni-Kiko Volunteer Center for distribution.
When she got there, she was surprised that the staff at the HQ asked her for the receipt. They cross-checked against the receipt to make sure that every item handed in was accounted for. What ‘Tina’ thought would be a simple drop-off took some time as the contents of each box and bag were “painstakingly” inventoried against the long receipt she had brought.
‘Tina’ said, “in disbelief”: “Ginagawa ninyo ito kada donation?”
The volunteer replied: “Yes, po, kailangan talaga because we want to be fully accountable for every item we receive. ‘Yan po ang system dito.”
‘Tina’ wrote: “If grocery items for a donation drive required an extensive ‘resibo’, how much more other government plans and projects?”
This particular policy was confirmed by a volunteer, who said she had to do the checking one time and it was indeed insisted upon and implemented thoroughly. ‘Denise Nicole,’ in a set of art cards posted on social media, wrote that she had also gone to the Center to volunteer to help sort and pack relief goods for Typhoon Odette victims.
She detailed the procedure step by step: Donors’ names, address/organization, and contact details are taken down. Every item given is listed. A corresponding value is then assigned to each item, ex. 155 grams of sardines = P21.25 times the number of cans. Then, add up the total value of each person’s donation. The information is passed to a checker who then gives the data to an encoder who will record it.
‘Denise Nicole,’ who admits she is not good in math, had to do her calculations several times before she “passed.” “Parang exam,” she said. “It was tough.”
But, she added, “That’s what accountability is. That’s what transparency entails. That is the culture that Leni and Kiko promote.”
Transparency and accountability are watchwords of Robredo’s style of governance. When in Congress as the representative of Camarines Sur’s third district, the first bill she filed, in 2013, was the Full Disclosure Bill, which seeks to mandate government agencies to bare their budgets, documents of public interest, and financial transactions, the same practice institutionalized by her late husband Jesse Robredo when he was mayor of Naga City.
This is the kind of leader we need, someone who knows the value of honesty in public service, a person who is accountable to the people she serves. Public service is a public trust – people elect leaders and trust them to do right by them. An elected official who breaks this trust is unworthy of the position.
Robredo has instituted a culture of transparency and accountability in her office as vice president – this is one reason why the Commission on Audit has given her its highest rating for three consecutive years, a record that very few government agencies can boast of.
Where there is transparency and accountability, there is no room for corruption. There is no space for stealing from public coffers. There is no area that is shadowed with secrets and lies. For the undecided, let this ‘resibo’ culture of Leni be your sign. She is the leader that our country needs and deserves.
*** FB and Twitter: @DrJennyO