123rd CS Month Celebration calls to foster dynamic servant-heroes in DdO

 

The commencement of the month-long Civil Service Month celebration in Davao de Oro took place today, September 4, at the Provincial Capitol Lobby, calling to foster dynamic public servants. The event began with a thanksgiving Mass led by Reverend Fr. Fernand Bagnaan from Queen of Apostles College Seminary.

Governor Dorothy Montejo-Gonzaga, in her message, highlighted that with this celebration, it is crucial for employees to understand and remember the notable distinction between work and service.

She stated, "When we say work, it means you perform a task that is principally because you are being paid for it, but when we speak of service you don't even need any remuneration para ihatag ang serbisyo kay dili kana purely trabaho, kay ang pagpanerbisyo gikan kana sa gugma".

Under the 10-year theme "Transforming Public Service in the Next Decade: Honing Agile and Future-Ready Servant-Heroes," the celebration's central theme was "Dynamism." This highlighted the significance of digital transformation, innovation, excellence, and the persistent commitment to public service, as conveyed in a virtual message by CSC Chairperson Atty. Karlo Nograles.

“I call upon my fellow public servants to live up to and embody dynamism, especially in the delivery of public services. To support our vision for 2040, the Civil Service must be prepared to meet the evolving demands of the digital age, fully embracing the shift from a transactional to a strategic mindset." Nograles said.

Guest Speaker CSC-FO Acting Director Leilani C. Parel also reminded fellow public servants that the primary objective for which they have been entrusted with their current roles is "to provide excellent public service and to bring about customer value" as they navigate their daily routines and responsibilities.

Moreover, the ComVal Capitol Multi-Purpose Cooperative (CCMPC) and the Provincial Employees Union of Compostela Valley (PEUCV) have received Php 30k each in recognition of their consistent support during the annual celebration.

Governor Gonzaga closed the ceremony with her assurance to always pray for the employees' continued enthusiasm and commitment to pledging good public service to Dabawenyos.

"After all, we know our role, our task, that this is for the love of public service. And when we render true public service, ang tanan katawhan will truly appreciate that our government works" she genuinely voiced.

 (Jaynus Fernandez, Photos by Albert Dayao)

From feeding programs to tree planting, Sara says confidential funds used across the board

Cristina Chi - Philstar.com

September 4, 2023 | 1:01pm

MANILA, Philippines — Vice President Sara Duterte bared on Monday that nearly all major social welfare and public assistance programs under her office use confidential funds.

During the Office of the Vice President’s (OVP) budget briefing in the Senate, a more forthcoming Duterte reiterated that the confidential funds received by the OVP are used mainly for the “safe, secure and successful implementation of the projects, programs and activities” of her office, which she also enumerated.

Duterte was responding to a question by Sen. Risa Hontiveros who asked whether all the OVP projects and programs Duterte enumerated during the briefing — as well as her functions as vice president and two other roles in government — were funded by confidential expenditures. 

The vice president answered in the affirmative.

Duterte’s programs 

Duterte enumerated the following programs of the OVP which she confirmed were covered or supported by confidential expenses. Some of these, such as the Libreng Sakay and tree-planting programs, are the OVP’s flagship public assistance projects that were launched early into Duterte’s term in 2022.

“In addition to that I discharge the functions and duties of the Secretary of (the Department of Education). And in addition to that, I was tasked by the president to co-chair (the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict),” Duterte said.

“And in addition to that I also took on the role of the (president) of the Southeast Asian Ministers of Education Organization,” the vice president added.

“And all of these activities use confidential funds,” Duterte said.

Duterte’s response to Hontiveros is the first time the vice president has revealed — at least in broad terms — how the OVP has used its confidential funds since it first acquired the controversial lump sum in 2022. 

Hontiverous, however, pointed out that Duterte's other roles in DepEd and the NTF-ELCAC already have their own allocation of confidential expenses. 

Hontiveros also said that under the guidelines for confidential expenses, these can only be used for a "limited range of purposes," specifically those that are related to surveillance activities.

A 2015 joint circular covering the use of confidential and intelligence funds limits the use of confidential expenses to activities related to surveillance and information-gathering.

“So in broad terms, which activities enumerated in the joint circular are used (by the OVP) with confidential expenses?” Hontiveros asked in a mix of English and Filipino.

Duterte replied: “It varies. Not all activities are the same for each day and each month. The liquidation report of the confidential funds includes the enumeration of the use of the OVP.”

Duterte added that the OVP submits a liquidation of the confidential funds and “a list of activities” it was used for to the offices of the Senate President, the House Speaker and other concerned offices.

The senate finance panel on Monday approved the P2.385-billion proposed budget of the OVP after only Hontiveros and Senate Minority Leader Koko Pimentel questioned Duterte about the controversial funds. 

Sen. Bong Revilla ended the budget deliberations early out of "respect and courtesy" to Duterte. 

Makabayan bloc lawmakers last week criticized Duterte for refusing to field questions about the OVP’s confidential expenses after the House ended the agency’s budget briefing in just 15 minutes out of “parliamentary courtesy.” 

Before this, Duterte had blasted Rep. France Castro (ACT Teachers) for accusing her of illegally acquiring confidential funds through budget adjustments in 2022.

Scammer caught using confidential funds 

Duterte also said that the surveillance activities funded by the OVP's confidential expenses had led to the arrest of a scammer posing as an OVP representative to “sell” livelihood projects in Bulacan.

“As an example, we did a surveillance of complaints from constituents in Bulacan with regard to the selling of OVP assistance and selling of TUPAD projects in Bulacan. There was a surveillance operation that was run by the (Vice Presidential Security and Protection Group) for about a month,” Duterte said.

Duterte said they were able to apprehend the scammer and “successfully prosecute the case.”

“And that person went to jail for six months. That's an example of the surveillance activities conducted by the VPSPG for the projects and activities of the OVP,” Duterte said.

Hontiveros asked Duterte whether the OVP coordinated with the government’s main intelligence agency, the National Intelligence Coordinating Agency, and the Philippine National Police to gather intelligence.

Duterte said: “No. Intelligence starts with the communities and stakeholders. If there are complaints, then it is built up from intelligence and surveillance.”

The vice president also said there is no “reduplication” of efforts to gather intelligence as different agencies have different mandates.

Duterte also maintained that the confidential funds her office has requested each year since 2022 is something that her office “can live without.”

“The OVP can only propose the use of confidential funds based on joint circular 2015-01. But we leave it to the discretion (of Congress) who has the power of the purse to decide whether to grant confidential funds to our office. We can only propose. But we are not insisting,” Duterte said.

“We can live without confidential funds. But of course, our work will be much easier if we have the flexibility of confidential funds to monitor the safe, secure and successful implementation of the programs, projects and activities of the OVP,” she added.

In total, Duterte stands to get P650 million in confidential and intelligence funds in the proposed 2024 budget. At least P500 million will go to the OVP and P150 million will go to DepEd (P150 million), according to the 2024 National Expenditure Program.

Class cancellations: Balancing safety and learning

By: Eleanor Pinugu - @inquirerdotnet

Philippine Daily Inquirer / 04:25 AM September 04, 2023

Growing up in the pre-social media era, rainy mornings meant tuning in to A.M. radio to check if classes were canceled. The announcer typically mentioned affected cities in alphabetical order, and as soon as I heard “Parañaque,” I would immediately crawl back under the covers. On days when no such declaration was made, I would slip into autopilot mode and prepare for school while half-asleep.

However, there were times when the verdict on class cancellation came much later, and my classmates and I would already be in school. The joy of an unexpected day off was always tempered by the logistical nightmare of getting home. Our school bus service would eventually show up, but since its limited fleet was designed to pick up students at different dismissal times, not all of us could be immediately accommodated. Whenever I missed the first batch, my stranded busmates and I would sit down on the pavement, with little to do except eat microwavable pizza from the sole open food stand and wait for the second shift. Before we knew it, we had spent almost the entire day in school just waiting to go home.

Lost time was one thing, but the inconvenience I endured pales in comparison to the experience of students and teachers who rely on public transportation. Aside from braving heavy rain, they stand in long queues for a bus or jeepney and sit through hours of traffic to get to school, only for classes to eventually be canceled. They need to brace themselves for an even more challenging journey back home, with the possibility of getting stranded in flooded or vehicle-scarce areas.

To enhance the efficiency of class cancellation announcements, the Department of Education released updated guidelines in September 2022. According to Department Order No. 37, in-person and online classes from kindergarten to Grade 12 and work are automatically suspended if the school is in an area under Tropical Cyclone Wind Signal Nos. 1 to 5. The same is followed in cases where there is a flood warning, as well as when there are orange (intense) and red (torrential) rainfall warnings.

Nonetheless, delays in announcing class suspensions still occur when there are no official storm warnings from the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical, and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa) but there are strong winds, torrential rains, or flooding in specific areas. In these cases, suspension of classes is left to the local government unit’s discretion. Since public school classes start as early as 6 a.m., announcements made after 4:30 a.m. mean that many students are already en route, with some having already reached school. This not only compromises their safety, but also wastes their time, money, and resources.

Some disagree with early class cancellations, with concerns about unnecessary disruptions to the learning process, especially given the significant pandemic-related learning loss. I would argue, however, that announcing class cancellations a day in advance whenever possible could afford teachers ample time to plan and assign asynchronous activities, ensuring the momentum of learning continues at home. This would be a far more beneficial use of the students’ time, than the frustration and physical exhaustion they endure when stuck in the commute to school.

Department Order No. 37 acknowledges the need for adjustments in learning delivery in the event of class cancellations and encourages schools to implement modular distance learning, performance tasks, and make-up classes to ensure that learning competencies are still met. As climate change continues to make weather disturbances more common, schools should be more proactive in planning for quality remote learning activities that could be implemented during typhoon season. These measures could be as straightforward as preparing worksheets to reinforce mastery of previously tackled concepts or projects that students could undertake at home to introduce them to new topics scheduled for classroom discussion. The lockdown has provided us educators enough practice to guide our students in learning beyond the confines of the classroom. Perhaps it is time to apply that same creative resourcefulness to this context.

As always, flexibility and empathy must be paramount. Given that many students still grapple with challenges such as inconsistent internet access, unreliable devices, and a lack of quiet study spaces, the objective should not be to replicate everything they would have accomplished in a typical classroom day. Saturday makeup classes can serve that purpose. Instead, the focus should be activities that spark a child’s curiosity, deepen understanding, and build self-sufficiency. By nurturing independent learners and encouraging proactive educators, we are also cultivating a more resilient education system that could evolve with changes and overcome disruptions brought about by an uncertain future.

Read more: https://opinion.inquirer.net/166046/class-cancellations-balancing-safety-and-learning#ixzz8CIr0xsx1

Follow us: @inquirerdotnet on Twitter | inquirerdotnet on Facebook