Pulong tells barangay poll winners to speak up on dev't projects
At A Glance
- Davao City 1st district Rep. Paolo Duterte says newly-elected barangay officials shouldn't hesitate to make their voices heard by the national and local governments in the implementation of critical development projects.
Davao City 1st district Rep. Paolo Duterte (Facebook)
Davao City 1st district Rep. Paolo Duterte says newly-elected barangay officials shouldn't hesitate to make their voices heard by the national and local governments in the implementation of critical development projects.
“First of all, I congratulate our country’s newly-elected barangay officials." Duterte said in a statement Thursday, Nov. 2, or just three days removed from the Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan Elections (BSKE).
"With your fresh mandate, you can become instruments of meaningful change in the barangays that you are tasked to serve,” said Duterte, who began his career in the government service as a punong barangay in Barangay Catalunan Grande, Davao City. He would later become vice mayor.
“Development projects recommended and initiated by barangay officials ensure that good governance is felt by the people at the grassroots level. The voices of our barangay officials should be heard as they play a key role in being catalysts of development in their respective areas of jurisdiction,” he said.
According to the second-termer, the village leaders are in the best position to determine the projects and programs that will have a positive impact in the lives of their constituents.
Thus, their recommendations should be strongly considered in the implementation of government projects, he noted.
Duterte recalled that when he was vice mayor of Davao City, he established a consultative forum—the Pulong Pulong ni Pulong (PPP)--to encourage barangay officials to be more involved in delivering the needs of their constituents and in lobbying for priority projects in their respective communities.
This strategy of involving barangays in planning and implementing development projects is among the most effective means of combatting poverty at the grassroots level, especially in underserved and farflung communities beyond the immediate reach of the national government, Duterte said.