BACOLOD City – Bringing services closer to the people. This was the goal of a two-day tripartite seminar-workshop recently held at Balay Kauswagan in Sagay City, Negros Occidental.
The event, organized by the Philippine Army’s 79th Infantry Battalion (79IB) and the Philippine National Police, gathered 113 farmer-leaders from 28 farmer associations in Negros Occidental.
Slated June 17 to 18, the event aimed to align government plans with the implementation of the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program in Escalante City, Negros Occidental.
“We are just trying to bridge the gap in terms of basic social services. We are bringing government services closer to the people,” said Lieutenant Colonel Emelito Thaddeus Logan, commanding officer of the 79IB.
He added: “As we introduce a collaborative approach, we let the people on the grassroots level identify their own issues.”
This collaborative approach aims to make farmers trust government processes and programs, especially on land reforms, according to Logan.
The activity also aimed to empower farmers to avert exploitations of communist rebels and to uplift their socioeconomic well-being, he added./PN
