The “Budget Tracking for Transparent Accountable Governance in Mindanao (BTTAG)” is an initiative implemented by Balay Mindanaw Foundation, Inc. (BMFI) in partnership with the Civil Society Organizations (CSOs), Local Government Units, The Asia Foundation (TAF), and the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) with support from the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). BTTAG hopes to initiate and strengthen LGU-CSO’s journey towards enhancing transparent accountable governance through enhanced participation, accountability, responsiveness and transparency in the local budget process. The over-all project aims at enhancing Local Government Units – Civil Society Organization public-private partnership. The partnership is focused on the tracking of the local budget planning, execution, and accounting process as also promoted by President Benigno C. Aquino III and Secretary Jesse M. Robredo of the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG).

Aimed at scaling-up local fiscal management through CSO participation and budget transparency, the BTTAG 2nd Policy Dialogue was conducted last February 23, 2012 in Davao City where Secretary Robredo gave the Keynote Speech. The dialogue was attended by the different Local Chief Executives and representatives of BTTAG LGU partners, Civil Society Organizations, National Line Agencies and Legislators who were one in pursuing the call for a transparent and accountable governance.

The Call For Integrity

By Secretary Jesse M. Robredo
Department of Interior and Local Government

Psychologist and philosopher William James once said “a new idea is first condemned as ridiculous and then dismissed as trivial until finally it becomes what everybody knows.” The trajectory of acceptance, he says, goes from ridiculous to trivial to widely accepted knowledge.

Hopefully to many of us in this room, transparent and accountable governance has already graduated to the degree of “what everybody knows to be crucial for us to go to the next level of our national evolution.”

We preach it; we practice it. We devote time and effort to systematize our execution of it. Alam ko, na bigamy na bigamy talaga ang Balay Mindanaw sa gawaing ito with the help of our development partners USAID and The Asia Foundation and you all deserve the administration’s sincere appreciation for the work that you have done in this area.

For many of you, being here is accomplishment enough.

When Congressman Erin Tanada was saying about local government officials probably who are not very happy about the FOI Bill inasmuch as it imposes transparency in their operations, it is to them that all of those who are here did not yield. All of those who are present here have subscribe to the idea that accountability comes with authority. Lagi kong naaalala si Spider Man, ang sabi niya, “With great power comes with great responsibility.”

However, some may still be thinking that budget tracking and openness to CSOs are still trivial matters. Funding and resources, politics and vested interests are realities in the local government setting that we must face squarely. They can often take up most of a local chief executive’s time, leaving little energy for other concerns.

Trivial, however, is a lot better than ridiculous. Unfortunately, another reality is that in the outside world where government positions are considered juicy because of the perks and entitlements that go with them, what we are doing here in terms of transparent and accountable governance are still ridiculous. They may not say so; sometimes they may even speak our language and praise our work. But deep inside, they don’t think we will ever succeed in institutionalizing this movement.

They are wrong.

BTTAG Project Manager, Paul Richard A Paraguya, shares about the beginnings, challenges and inspiring stories during the implementation of BTTAG.

In our world today, there is an emerging power that does not come from carbon, subatomic particles, not politics. It’s the power of collaboration. Palagay ko po, yung pagtitipon-tipon natin dito, ito po yung kapangyarihan na hindi pa nila nasukat. You know, there was a time when the relationship of the local government units and NGOs were adversarial. There was a time when NGOs think that they cannot track the local government. And of course, LGUs felt that the group that can actually track them can’t participate. At this point in time I think all of us will agree that our mutual cooperation is the foundation of better local governance in our country.

It’s the idea that people coming together can effect great change. Filipinos are early adopters in this game–we have stumbled on this power in the 1980s with the revolution that kicked out a dictator and put President Aquino’s late mother into power. Perhaps going back as far as the days of bayanihan, we have already proven to be naturals at collaboration.

BTTAG and CSOS participation in budget tracking harvest the power of collaboration. This movement gives local governments good reason to fix their budget systems, to be accountable to their constituents, and raise the bar overall in Mindanao local governance. And since good governance is a shared responsibility, it provides a platform for people to engage their local government. It also raises CSO capability by opening up the conversation on budgets–the true indicator of any organization’s real intentions.

The DILG over the last two years has institutionalized the Seal of Good Housekeeping. This may be an oversimplification, but the success of this reform rests on the collaboration of two things. One, the execution of the LGU. Two, the participation of CSOs and POs. We are flinging the doors wide open for people to participate in governance. Especially here in Mindanao.

Next month, we are bringing this reform to a higher level. We are launching the Second Level of the Seal of Good Housekeeping to ensure that we hit a new standard of managing our people, resources, and transformative leadership.

In 2011, we focused on sound financial management through COA opinions on local financial transactions and observance of the Full Disclosure Policy. This year, those who did not qualify will be assessed on SGH Bronze, and those who did will be covered by SGH Silver.

For Silver, on top of the COA Opinions and Full Disclosure Policy, we are now requiring LGUs to comply with the Government Procurement Act through the creation of a functional Bids and Awards Committee and the requirements of the Philippine Government Electronic Procurement System of PhilGEPS. Another criteria is the CSC Report Card Survey on the Anti-Red Tape Law.

Eventually, we a hoping that LGUs will aim to qualify for SGH Gold, which brings transparent and accountable governance to a whole new level. SGH Gold means that CSOs, the constituency are now part of budget planning, budget monitoring and budget implementation or execution.

I have to stress that we did not invent these reforms. They are included in the Local Government Code and other laws. Filipinos are great at making laws, right? All we need to do is execute them.

So, we have packaged these concepts to make them executable, and included incentives to reward those who comply. Let me say na itinaas na po natin ang antas ng sukat sa paglilingkod. May panahon po na hinahanap natin ang mahusay lang. May panahon po na hinahanap natin ang matino lang. Hindi po sabihin na ang matino ay mahusay. Hindi po ibig sabihin na ang mahusay ay matino. Ang atin pong sukat: mahusay at matino.

In 2011, 1,325 LGUs were conferred the Seal of Good Housekeeping. Of this number, 351 LGUs became recipients of the Performance Challenge Fund. As with any reform, that was not easy. But we have to keep on going.

Why do we keep on pushing boundaries even if people at first didn’t think we could do it? Are we doing this only for the sake of checking a “to do” list for transparent and accountable governance? For pogi points? For image?

We are doing these to have better outcomes. We are doing these to improve service delivery to so many poor Filipinos out there whose future rest on responsive local governments. We are doing these because there is a great call for integrity in this nation–and the world–and that the power of collaboration is the key to make this happen.

Simply put, by making everything transparent, we do believe we can deliver better outcomes for our constituents.

When Starbucks asked Harvard professor and author Daniel Gilbert to write 50 words that they can print in their paper cups, he included this:

“When you hold your fate in your hands, why would you ever make a fist?”

Why indeed? LGUs, you have the fate of your communities in your hands. Isn’t it logical to open up those hands in the spirit of collaboration and share the power and responsibility? CSO participation in budgets is like the sun and its effect on dark and moist places. No deep dark secrets can grow when you open these places to the rays of the sun. Opening up budgets to public scrutiny allows for more integrity in governance.

To me, the call for integrity should be treated as something wildly important in our survival as a specie. Many of the things we are suffering now are a direct result of a watered-down approach to honesty and integrity. From the subprime crisis to the peace and development problems in this region; from SALNs to reimbursements.

Perhaps we can also find a way to use the power of collaboration so that we as a society will look closely at questions like “why doesn’t the lack of integrity cause our blood to boil?” “Is it alright to be dishonest in our financial documents because everyone is doing it?” We need to seriously rethink our value system, and ask ourselves “Are we really going to let this shape our society?”

You know, sometimes we really need to trivialize all of these just to make that realization that at the end of the day we are not doing this for ourselves, we are doing this for our children. I now realize that I am at the sunset of my career. What we do, whatever we did is really important to the next generation who are expecting that they inherit a better world than what we inherited.

We need to raise a new level of awareness as to why the lack of integrity and accountability should be disgusting to every Filipino. Disgusting is a strong word, but this issue deserves it. The lack of integrity is a clear and present danger in our journey along the “daang matuwid.” The call for integrity to be a “shoutout”, not something we all save for the next generation.

We, the DILG, hope to enlist you all in this movement.

It is very unfortunate and very unfair that Mindanao is home to corrupt government officials. My own exposure now show that it is unfair to say that it is a model of corrupt governance because of the efforts of BTTAG, USAID, The Asia Foundation and Balay Mindanaw. They have demonstrated the important value that we need to promote to take the country for the better are being spread all over in this part of the country.

Thank you very much.