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Sec. Mar Roxas stresses the people’s liberty on identifying BuB projects as one of DILG flagship programs
SAN JOSE DEL MONTE CITY, BULACAN – Secretary of the Interior and Local Government Mar Roxas led the signing of the ‘One Safe Future’ Memorandum of Agreement between the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) and the City Government of San Jose Del Monte, Bulacan on January 23, 2015 Friday, at the San Jose Del Monte Covered Court, in tune with the commemoration of the founding anniversary of the Malolos Republic.
The ceremony bearing the theme: ‘Kabahayan, Kabuhayan, Kinabukasang Marangal’, was attended by DILG Regional Director Florida M. Dijan, DPA, CESO III, San Jose Del Monte City Mayor Reynaldo S. San Pedro, Vice Mayor Eduardo S. Roquero, Jr., Presidential Commission for the Urban Poor (PCUP) Commissioner Ric Domingo, and National Housing Authority General Manager, Atty. Chito Cruz with a crowd composed of approximately 600 barangay officials and functionaries and 1,030 informal settlers.
DILG’s partnership with San Jose Del Monte City and TESDA which seeks to provide livelihood skills to the relocated Informal Settler Families (ISFs), is a component of the relocation project of the City Government of San Jose Del Monte. The resettlement site is the City Government’s response to the rampant population growth and high level of poverty in the City as reported by its City Planning and Development Officer Ms. Regina Delos Reyes.
In his address, Secretary Roxas first thanked RD Dijan’s contribution to the Bottom-Up Budgeting (BUB) program of the Department which caters to the needs of the community by including the local poverty-reduction projects identified by the people themselves in the national budget. He then stressed that President Aquino’s 30 Million Peso BUB project will be trickled down equitably.“Paano gagastusin ‘yung pondo na pantay-pantay? Wala po’ng pulitika dito, walang tsaleko, walang kulay, walang partido”, he said.
He also noted that it is the National Government’s commitment to translate into reality the projects identified by the community by adding: “Ang tao, binibigyan ni Pangulong Noynoy ng kanyang pamahalaan magpasya kung ano ang pinaka-priority natin, saan natin dapat gastusin ito, at kung ano man ang napagpasyahan natin, ‘yan ang commitment ng National Government na popondohan natin”.
Finding its way into his address was the 50 Billion-Peso aid to Informal settlers made possible thru NHA’s General Manager Chito Cruz. He also emphasized the importance of TESDA’s provision of ‘tradable skills’ by saying: “Ang isang graduate sa TESDA na marunong mag-welding, sa loob lamang ng isa o dalawang taon, ay iniimbita na sa Australia, Canada at New Zealand”.
Roxas also lauded the members of the DILG family particularly the Philippine National Police (PNP) and Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP) for showing their dedication to public service especially during the highly anticipated Papal Visit on January 16 to 19 which engendered a crowd estimate of 6 million during the concluding mass at Luneta. As a result, continuous support to these agencies will be provided in the form of vehicles: 500 fire trucks for the BFP and 1,800 Patrol vehicles for the PNP.
Consequently, he highlighted that the MOA signing ceremony will result to the downloading of P40 Million from DILG to the City Government to fund the so-called ‘people’s plan’ which was drafted by various People’s Organizations (POs) mainly for the purpose of resettlement.
Roxas concluded his address by expounding the Filipino term ‘manigo’ in the traditional New Year greeting, ‘Manigong Bagong Taon’ which literally means ‘to hit what you target’, thus his closing statement: “tamaan natin ang ating inaasinta tungo sa maunlad, payapa, at maayos na kinabukasan”.
