Dominguez calls for reform in use of barangay funds

By Gina Dizon

SABANGAN, Mountain Province – Congressional candidate and former national Local Government Leadership Awardee Jupiter Dominguez said in his platform that funds intended for barangay LGUs should be directly transmitted to barangay coffers.

These include development funds within barangay implementation, honoraria of the barangay officers including the barangay health workers and the Day Care teachers and National Agency fund support and Priority Development Assistance Funds (PDAF). Dominguez noted that funds covering those items ‘highly technical’ in nature including big buildings does not cover the proposed policy.

As it is now, barangay support funds are first transmitted to the municipal and provincial LGUs and national agencies before flowing to barangay accounts. Directly transmitting funds to barangay LGUs and eliminating a conduit link will result to faster delivery of services, Dominguez noted.
The above measure also minimizes red tape and corruption, he added.

Do we ensure that there will be no corruption here? Dominguez says corruption has been ingrained in the political system of the country, but measures can be done to prevent this. One, by installing monitoring systems in barangay, municipal, and provincial levels in government with the involvement of the community.

Stipends of Day Care teachers and barangay health workers are sourced from Municipal and Provincial LGU heavily dependent on the discretion of the local decision making bodies. In most cases, a monthly honorarium of a barangay Day Care Worker is barely enough to buy a cavan of rice. A Day Care teacher works for at least half day every working day and receives P1, 500 a month.

That is, unless the LGU will raise the allowance for barangay workers as exemplified by former Bontoc Vice mayor and current mayoral candidate Florence Taguiba in a municipal legislation which increased the honoraria of Day Care teachers in this capital town.

The absence of a fixed standard pay rate for barangay workers basically leaves them denied of a fair monthly allowance and incentives despite their work load.

Barangay health workers do a number of tasks which include assisting in the delivery of babies, sputum collection, conducting census and cooking during barangay occasions. They receive as low as P600 to P1, 500 for every three months.

In one recent gathering among barangay health workers from Cagubatan, Tadian, they forwarded that the equivalent cost of at least one cavan of rice per month is enough to pay for their services.

Dominguez noted that there is a need for a law to ensure defined allowances and incentives of barangay health workers in furtherance to a national law.

And how does the solon-candidate come up with proposed bills?

Jupiter Dominguez sees consultative governance as a way for proposed bills to find their way in Congress. Potential bills shall be sourced from Barangay, Municipal and Provincial LGUs which shall accordingly identify their concerns and priorities in their resolutions.

These shall then form basis for consideration by the Congressional representative in his proposed bills to be forwarded to Congress. Regular meetings shall be held with the solon. The Mountain Province congressional office shall also be sustained to facilitate concerns in the province, Dominguez added.