ILOILO City – Some 800 barangay captains and councilmen here are on a five-day lakbay aral (study tour) of Bataan province and Olongapo City.
It is not a junket, stressed Mayor Jerry Treñas and Councilor Irene Ong, city federation president of the Liga ng mga Barangay.
The study tour is from Sept. 3 to 7. Treñas said the barangay officials would be learning the “best practices” of other barangays and local government units such as in tourism.
The city has 180 barangay councils; each council has a barangay captain and seven council members. For this lakbay-aral, each has a budget of P30,500.
In March this year, President Rodrigo Duterte signed an executive order barring government officials and employees from going on all forms of junkets.
Executive Order (EO) No. 77 signed by the President on March 15 provided new rules and regulations for official local and foreign travels of government personnel. It states that “all forms of travel junkets shall be strictly prohibited.”
“Maayo na nga makalibot sila. Makit-an nila ang importansya sang tourism para sa isa ka lugar,” said Treñas who wants to make Iloilo City a preferred destination for M.I.C.E. (Meetings Incentives Conferencing and Exhibition) and tourism.
Bataan, he added, has many heritage houses like Iloilo City.
“Kon ang driver sang taxi indi ka intindi sang importance saing MICE and how MICE can help hasten our economic development, indi kita mag-intindihanay. Mag-abot mga bisita ta, pabudlayan, sukton sang mahal. But if we are on the same page, mas mahapos para sa aton,” said Treñas.
Duterte’s EO No. 77 stressed that official local or foreign travels and assignments must meet the needs of the government agency concerned, and be essential to the effective performance of an official or an employee’s mandates or functions.
Travels may also be authorized if the presence of the official or employee is critical to the outcome of the official activity to be attended and the projected expenses are not excessive or involve minimum expenditure.
Ong defended the study tour, likening it to just attending a convention where important matters are discussed.
The barangay officials, Ong said, are interested to learn from other local government units and barangays their best practices in drug rehabilitation, ecotourism, solid waste management, and disaster risk reduction and management.
“Indi man masiling nga ma-perfect namon; may mabal-an man kami maski gamay,” according to Ong.
As to the impression that barangay officials did not apply to their respective turfs what they learned in past study tours, Ong said, “Mga bag-o subong ang mga barangay captains. Tan-awon ta. May ginkuha gid kami nga mga resource persons.”/PN
