DAVAO CITY, Philippines — In what could be described as a breakthrough, Philippine President Rodrigo Roa Duterte will convene the en banc assembly of the National Anti-Poverty Commission on Jan. 30—the first time in 10 years that a sitting president has done.
“The en banc is crucial for coming up with coordinated and sustained anti-poverty programs and projects across all agencies of government. It ensures harmony and efficiency in the implementation of the President’s anti-poverty thrust,” NAPC Undersecretary for Basic Sectors Maria Corazon Tan said in a statement on Wednesday.
Tan said that prior to en banc assembly she met with the NAPC Technical Action Officers-Technical Working Group at the Department of Agriculture last Jan. 23.
She acted on behalf of NAPC lead convenor Liza Maza who is in Rome, Italy for the third round of peace talks between the government and the communist group.
The TAO-TWG “serves as the converging point for basic sectors and national agencies in coming up with pro-poor, anti-poverty resolutions,” she said.
Meanwhile, NAPC Lead Convenor Liza Maza said in a text message: “We take steps to ensure that the voices of the poor reach the halls of Malacañang. We, in NAPC, are glad that a sitting President, after a period of 10 years, has once again taken the lead in addressing poverty issues and concerns.”
Maza pointed out that NAPC is not an implementing agency but rather “an agency tasked to coordinate, monitor, evaluate and exercise policy oversight of the government’s anti-poverty programs and projects.”
“NAPC does not give dole-outs. The agency, instead, ensures active participation and representation of the basic sectors in governance. The government and the people should “push pa more” to safeguard the rights and welfare of the poor, because everyone wins when poverty is alleviated,” she added.
The last NAPC en banc assembly was held on July 30, 2007, during the time of then President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo. No en banc assembly was held during the entire six years of former President Benigno Simeon Aquino.
NAPC was created in 1998 thru Republic Act 8425. It serves as the coordinating advisory body for the implementation of the President’s Social Reform Agenda. (davaotoday.com)
