Empowering the Grassroots (Article from Mindaview)

Empowering the Grassroots

            It is now a movement slowly but surely gaining momentum sweeping the entire  nation. Thankfully, its finally hitting the mark consolidating the mass  base  making their presence felt among different area of the country as people from different walks of life- student, farmers, retirees, government workers, NGO’s,  church, professionals, artists and all concerned tax-paying citizens - are joining the crusade for effective and transparent government.

 We should or implacable  rambling of sounds and fury that  have been polluting our environment would all what we would be hearing all over again  everywhere ad infinitum. Let’s install  back the  order and restore decency to where it rightfully belongs. Where else if not to our original true home where our heart is,  there’s our happiness also, the barangay. Its payback time  for that basic unit of  institution. When else we  would be  returning  the compliment anyway having lived, breathed and moved there  if not now when the surge is  strong needed to overhaul that wrong  perception of its people expectantly  turning around, making the system works for its own good.  

You might not know it.  But the nostalgia and  consciousness pervading in the atmosphere  is just  like rediscovering of new home. It is. Actually, we’ve been  all there only more  as mere resident and transient without ever openly participating in its own affairs As we merely extended lip service concocting desirable interventions in papers only  through mere support without ever participating it, see what we reap. Whirlwind of confusion instead of clear-cut direction, division instead of unity and worst, squandering of resources instead of harnessing it into vibrant economy. And need to say more of patronage system and less empowered citizenry in politics, that which we all seek to weed out to establish better and transparent government.

 The litany of enmity is long as far as our inaptitude  would allow.  With Gising Barangay Movement however, I know such incompetence would already be thing of the past. It’s just the nature of man to cling to which  that is good and do what is  best for himself and the community. As relevant didactic maxim further  puts it: All that is necessary for evil to triumph is for good men to do nothing. And true enough “it is better to light a candle than to curse the darkness!”    

 Would you then dare to  share making a difference. By all means, join. The Gising Barangay Movement will hold a General Membership Meeting and Election of Board of Trustees on June 26, 2010, 9:00 A.M. to 4:00 PM at the Living Spring Resort, Baloy, Tablon, Cagayan de Oro City. You can contact Michael D. Cagulada, Board Secretary or email: gbm@yahoo.com or you may visit Website:www.gbm.com.ph. Take the challenge. Your time and effort will definitely go long way. Registration fee of P100.00 is required to cover lunch and snacks for this purpose.

If you can’t manage, never mind.   That for as long as you come out from your shell and start  ironing out issues in your respective barangay.  No need to go macro. Just be there in your area as concerned tax paying citizen. You can make things happen by simply  practicing the advocacy through  which your barangay stands for. How to do it?  Here are some relevant questions as your checklist. Do you know how much IRA   your barangay has? What are its resources that once explored and exploited would add revenue for your barangay?  What about the arts and talents encompassing in you area. Do you attend barangay assembly. Most importantly, do you help formulate Barangay Dev’t. Plan before its integration to Muncipal Dev’t. Plan. There are definitely many issues.  It’s there for you to take it as concerned tax paying citizen.

Most importantly with election of barangay officials fast approaching this October, it is behooved upon all stakeholders now to form the battle lines to secure the right of suffrage among the constituents.  After the poll automation, it’s time to continue holding clean election hopefully to clothe elected barangay officials with clean and fresh mandate. As such we can rest secure as we laid down the basic foundation of the entire government with the power solidly resting on its sovereign voter down in the barangay, the basic unit and truly  home of us all.