Noy empowers basic sectors belonging to NAPC

MANILA, Philippines – President Aquino has returned to the basic sectors the power to nominate their representatives to the National Anti-Poverty Commission (NAPC) to “ensure autonomy and responsibility” on their part.

Speaking at the NAPC assembly at the Philippine International Convention Center Tent in Pasay City yesterday, the President cited the important role of the National Sectoral Assembly (NSA) organized by NAPC in the government’s campaign to rid the country of poverty.

Aquino said the NSA is an effective tool in bringing the basic sector and government together to discuss anti-poverty strategies.

The President issued Administrative Order 21 imposing a new set of criteria for sectoral representatives who could participate in the assemblies of the NAPC.

“During the past years, many civil society organizations have been disenfranchised from joining the NAPC process,” he said.

“We have now issued AO 21 to amend the implementing rules and regulations of the Social Reform and Poverty Alleviation Act to push for a more meaningful representation from our basic sectors.”

He said the NSA would not just be a good vehicle for the basic sectors to air their concerns but to formulate strategies and solutions for them as well.

The NSA brings together 1,300 representatives of basic sector organizations from all over the country in a three-day convention from Oct. 17 to 19.

The basic sectors considered the most vulnerable to poverty nationwide are artisans, fisher folk, children, farmers, indigenous peoples, non-government organizations, persons with disabilities, senior citizens, urban poor, victims of disasters, women, political parties, formal labor and migrant workers, workers in the informal sector, youth and students.

This year’s assembly, with the theme “Sa NAPC, may boses ang Boss,” will have participants select members of their sectoral councils and their representatives who are envisioned to be frontrunners in the pursuit of their respective sectoral agendas.

NAPC chairman Joel Rocamora said former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo’s AO 187 excluded from the list of representatives groups not friendly to the government.

AO 21 provides minimum requirements for participation. These include proof of legal existence such as Securities and Exchange Commission registration or local government unit or government agency accreditation; license to operate; accreditation certificate and/or other certificates as proof of legal existence such as from the tribal council of elders;

An organizational audit system instituting an autonomous accreditation process among the organizations; minimum 30 percent gender quota for women on all sectoral assemblies, including having at least one woman-nominee as sectoral representative; and board resolution or certification that the participant is the duly authorized representative of the organization.

At the same time, the President defended anew the government’s conditional cash transfer (CCT) program, saying it was an investment for the future and not a dole-out for the poor.

He said his administration would continue to implement the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps) as one of the major government strategies to reduce poverty in the Philippines.

The President said that aside from being an initial answer to the needs of the poor, he saw the 4Ps as a means to secure the future of all Filipinos.

He said the CCT program was a first aid and lifesaver that could spell a lot of difference for its beneficiaries in the future.

“By ensuring that there is food on the table… that every chair in classrooms is occupied by young Filipinos… giving medical attention to our countrymen, we also make sure that the children get better opportunities to rise up from poverty,” Aquino said.

The 4Ps is a poverty reduction and social development strategy of the national government that provides conditional cash grants to extremely poor households to improve their health, nutrition and education, particularly of children aged 0-14. –Aurea Calica (The Philippine Star)