Editorial
Acid test for good governance
NOW that the country has finally stirred and been angered by the culture of corruption in politics, no section of government should be spared from scrutiny, which means all the way to the barangay level, officials must be subject to accountability and transparency.
Barangays today are awash with funds and it rests upon the people in the communities to ensure that public money – their money – is appropriately spent. With the barangay election coming up, the voters in the village must make good governance a primary campaign issue. The barangay, being the most basic political unit (not counting the family), could very well be the acid test for the people’s capability and commitment to pursue the change it demands on how government runs its affairs.
The barangay is the branch of government that should be the easiest to monitor because it is small and the people have direct access and communication with their elected officials. A straightforward report of finances vis-à-vis project accomplishments posted in the barangay hall should be an easy enough job for the officials and reviewing the report should be a manageable task for the people, perhaps with leadership from a senior citizen alongside a youth volunteer.
The people’s vigilance within the barangay politics sets the tone for the level of governance that is expected of all elected officials, all the way to the President. If we can’t keep watch on how our money is being spent or misspent right within our village, how could we ever expect to become vigilant guards of the bigger political scene. If we can protect our barangay funds, then we can begin to aim to secure the bigger pot.
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Waiting game
FIRST, the P10-billion scam involving private citizen Janet Lim-Napoles, and several senators and congressmen. Mainly in this anomaly, government monies were allegedly pocketed by Napoles and the lawmakers using non-existent NGOs as recipients of lump-sum funds coming from Malacanang. They divided the loot among themselves in the Heist of the Century. Napoles et al. are now facing cases of plunder at the Ombudsman.
Second, the PDAF (Priority Development Assistance Fund) a.k.a. pork barrel funds, which financed the P10-B scam, had been abolished (?) by President Aquino.
Third, the DAP (Disbursement Allocation Program) has come to the fore as another cow-cash similar to the PDAF and, on record, has reached more than P72 billion. The only difference is, the DAP is directly attached to the Office of the President and labeled as presidential savings for disposal only by P-Noy.
Questions have arisen about the legality and constitutionality, among others, of the cash movement of both the PDAF and DAP, or on whether or not P-Noy is allowed by the Constitution to disburse such funds.
Until the Supreme Court has spoken, nothing is certain. The waiting game is on.
