(left photo) seated from left: Gov. Umali, Sec. Roxas and LnB Pres. Abesamis during the MOA Signing. Looking on are Rev. Apolinario Cunanan of the United Methodist Church, RD Dijan and PCSupt. Petrasanta
DILG Secretary Mar Roxas graced the Launching and MOA Signing of Ugnayan ng Barangay at Simbahan (UBAS) in Nueva Ecija on December 1, 2014 at Convention Center, Palayan City, Nueva Ecija. Assisting the Secretary were DILG R-3 Director Florida Dijan and DILG Nueva Ecija Provincial Director and OIC Assistant Regional Director Abraham Pascua.
Roughly 3,000 participants composed of Chairpersons and members of the different Barangay Pastoral Councils (BPCs), Parish Priests, Priests, Pastors, members of the PNP, BFP, BJMP, Sangguniang Barangay Members (SBMs), Tanods, Sangguniang Barangay (SB) Secretaries and Administrative Staff, members of Inter-Faith communities, among many others joined the activity.
The Liga ng mga Barangay (LnB) National President and UBAS National Convenor Edmund Abesamis in his welcome remarks extolled GPP and the UBAS Program of DILG. On the other hand, UBAS National Technical Working Group (TWG) Coordinator Rev. Fr. Antonio E. Labiao, Jr. presented the overview of UBAS.
N.E. Governor Aurelio Umali expressed his Message of Support by citing the Separation of the Church and of the State that we have long been used to. He said that that day stressed the importance of Church and State TIES and interdependence. He thanked Secretary Mar Roxas and pledged his provincial government’s support to uphold UBAS in all of the barangays of Nueva Ecija.
Different Inter-Faith Communities namely: Most Reverend Roberto C. Mallari, Bishop of the Diocese of San Jose City; Most Reverend Sofronio A. Bancud, Bishop of the Diocese of Cabanatuan City; Rev. David G. Reyes, District Supt. of the IEMELIF Church; and Rev. Gilbert D. Pascua, Dist. Supt. of the United Methodist Church each gave short messages in full support of the UBAS program.
Sec. Roxas in his message said that all the DILG projects in every barangay are posted on the DILG website and anyone can go to the website to see the status of every particular project in every barangay. He was holding a hard copy of the said DILG projects during his speech. “All cities and municipalities are in here; the addresses of the project and the geomap are also provided. This is what I want to turn-over today to the Church”, he said.
“In 2014, P247M was allotted for Nueva Ecija, in 2015, it will be roughly P500M. This is the most concrete way to advance President Aquino’s ‘Tuwid na Daan’. You will be the one to choose the projects. You will have a say through the LPRAP or the Local Poverty Reduction Action Plan. This is in addition to the Internal Revenue Allotment (IRA) and the national government projects. The LPRAP will be elevated to the National Government. The National Government will fund those projects. You, the LGUs, will be the ones to implement. You, the citizens, will be the ones to choose. In this program, there is equality for all, regardless of political party affiliation. We do not want ghost projects. We want the projects to be realized, so there will be a watch over these projects. This assembly is the most numerous, most full and most complete in all of the assemblies we have seen in the entire country”, the Secretary said.
The activity was concluded with the Signing of the Memorandum of Agreement and Unity Statement by the Barangays, the Church and DILG.
(from left) ARD/Nueva Ecija PD Pascua, RD Dijan and Sec. Mar Roxas affix their signatures in the UBAS Unity Statement
