The Marcos administration on Wednesday launched the ‘OGPinas!’, a national advocacy campaign on open government, at SM North Skydome in Quezon City. The Department of Budget and Management (DBM) collaborated with the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) and the Philippine Information Agency (PIA) for the launch of the open government campaign, in light of the institutionalization of administration of the Philippine Open Government Partnership (PH-OGP). ‘OGPinas! aims to raise awareness about the PH-OGP, especially at the local level; provide avenues and more channels of communication for government-civil society partnerships; and ultimately, strengthen public participation in policy-making and governance in the country,’ the DBM said in a statement on Wednesday. The launch of OGPinas’ was led by DBM Secretary Amenah Pangandaman, accompanied by DILG Undersecretary Marlo Iringan, PIA director-general Jose Torres Jr., and Metropolitan Manila Development Authority general manager Procopio Lipana. The DBM said over a hundred participants from Metro Manila, Calabarzon, Mimaropa and Bicol Region joined the first leg of the milestone campaign. Pangandaman, who concurrently served as PH-OGP chairperson, emphasized the crucial role of an open government in attaining the Marcos administration’s Agenda for Prosperity. ‘Napakarami po nating magagandang inisyatibo at pagsusumikap upang isulong ang bukás na pamamahala sa bansa. Hangad po natin na sa pamamagitan ng OGPinas!, mailapit natin ang mga inisyatibong ito upang yakapin at mas lalo pa po nating mapagyaman (We have many good initiatives and efforts to promote open governance in the country. We hope that through OGPinas!, we can bring these initiatives closer to embrace and enrich them even more),’ she said. ‘Mapalad din po tayo dahil ang ating mahal na Pangulo-ang Pangulong Ferdinand Romualdez Marcos Jr.-ay sumusuporta sa ating adbokasiya ng Open Government (We are also fortunate because our dear President-President Ferdinand Romualdez Marcos Jr.-supports our advocacy of Open Government),’ Pangandaman added. Pangandaman has been pushing and advocating for open government in the bureaucracy, apart from digital transformation and budget reforms. The PH-OGP has been institutionalized by virtue of Executive Order 30 signed by Marcos on June 20. Iringan said the OGPinas! campaign is the country’s vehicle for transformation. ‘Let us bear in mind that open governance is not just a policy, it is the very foundation of a strong democracy; it is not just an advocacy, it is an imperative as we believe that we can do more when we work together,’ he said. City Administrator Michael Victor Alimurung, who graced the event on behalf of Quezon City Mayor Joy Belmonte, cited the city government’s various efforts to maintain transparency and accountability, including the accreditation of over 4,000 civil society organizations and the creation of a People’s Council composed of persons with disabilities, senior citizens, and solo parents. The DBM said champions of open government across different sectors were also recognized during the program, including the Quezon City government for the public sector and the SM Supermalls for the private sector. SM Prime Holdings senior vice president Bien Mateo accepted the recognition on behalf of the company’s executive committee chairman Hans Sy. Mateo expressed the SM’s commitment to nurture its relationship with the government and catalyze a better quality of life for Filipinos through the whole-of-society approach. A champion of open government in the civil society sector, Unang Hakbang Foundation Inc. president Maria Olivia Lucas, said the PH-OGP is a very good platform for reopening the conversation between the government and non-government sectors. The Quezon City leg of OGPinas! was organized by the DBM-National Capital Region headed by Regional Director Ruby Muro, together with regional offices in Calabarzon, Mimaropa, and Bicol Region and partner agencies. The Visayas leg of OGPinas! will be held in Iloilo City on Oct. 18.

Source: Philippines News Agency