Liga ng mga Barangay

Catarman, Northern Samar

REINVENTING BARANGAY GOVERNANCE

(Inaugural Speech of the Hon. Ruth Martires Figueroa, delivered upon her assumption of office as ExOfficio Member of the Sangguniang Bayan of the Municipality of Catarman, Province of Northern Samar, on December 17, 2013.)

The Honorable Presiding Officer, Vice Mayor Christian Emmanuel Uy, the Honorable Members of this august body, mga igkasi ko Catarmananon, a pleasant Tuesday morning to all of you. First of all, let me convey my heartfelt thanks to all of you dear colleagues for a warm welcome. Such gestures of support somehow ease the feeling of being a stranger in this august body. Mao iton balitaw an feeling sin sayo nga bag-ohan sa bisan diin nga hugpong. Pero dire ako nababaraka kay ini nga presente nga hugpong san Sanggunian, bantogan san pagigin no-nonsense public servants. Kumbaga, nagtatrabaho sumala san ira mandato. I am therefore confident that I can count on you as I venture into the task ascribed upon my position as representative of the Liga Ng Mga Barangay in our beloved Catarman. Nga ako magsirbe bilang boses san mga baryohanon in dako nga ayat para sa ak. Nga magsirbe san interes san mga tuminongnong sa barangay in sobra sin kadako nga responsibilidad. As everyone knows, I am only in my second term as Punong Barangay of UEP Zone III. I have to admit, the task was daunting. For a person like me who is always handson in all things I get myself involved into, transforming my barangay into what it is today is a product of hard work. Women empowerment, peace and order, livelihood trainings, waste management name it, UEP Zone III has it all. Mao iton an nagin handumanan san akon liderato. Undoubtedly, UEP Zone III has become a showcase of people-centered barangay governance. Mao ini an nakit-an san akon mga igkasi punong

barangay. Ngan mao ini an akon magigin giya agud ma-replicate ini sa ngatanan nga mga barangay sa aton bungto. As I begin my Day One in this Honorable Council, let me assure each one of you, dear colleagues that my presence here is not and is never anchored on any partisan interest. There are a lot of concerns in the barangays that need our full support. Let us rise above partisan politics and reinvent ourselves as leaders in whose hands the development of our barangays largely depend. In our inaugural meeting at the LIGA Federation, we have already started crafting our plans in the next three years. And those plans can never stand independent of and separate from the development framework of this Sanggunian in the next three years. Convergence is the name of the game the sanggunian and the LIGA pooling their resources together to arrive at sustainable programs and projects. Nakitan ta naman an resulta san kawara koordinasyon san barangay ngan sanggunian. Mao nga para sa ak, panahon na para iduso an hugot nga kooperasyon sini nga mga institusyon. After all, that is the purpose why the Local Government Code was enacted. The representation of LIGA president in the Sanggunian is never a ceremonial one. In fact, of all the members in the sanggunian, the LIGA representative is one who has a direct link with the barangay constituency. Salit kon nano an maupay nga programa ug kaladnganan nga maipapahamtang san LIGA representative dinhe sa sanggunian, mayaon iton dayon dako nga impact ngadto san at mga baryohanon. You see, the task is really very big. Kundi dire ako nahuhulop kay kamo an makakapagaan sini. Salit nadangop ako san iyo bulig. Please do not fail our barangay leaders. Do not fail our barangay constituents. Damo pa ini nga mga higayon kon diin ako maglalata sa iyo atobangan. For now, mao iton la muna an buot ko ipaabot sa iyo. Rest assured that this representation will not be a spare tire in this hallowed halls. Aktibo ako nga iyo magigin kasugbong sa konseho. Salamat, Salamat sa iyo ngatanan!

Ruth M. Figueroa
Punong Barangay, UEP Zone III President, Liga ng mga Barangay Ex-Officio Member, Sangguniang Bayan
December 17, 2013