ARMM to intensify information drive on peace process

COTABATO CITY, Philippines - Information officers of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao's (ARMM) line agencies will intensify the dissemination of the region's accomplishments complementing the southern peace process, officials said.

Amir Mawalil, executive director of the ARMM’s Bureau of Public Information, said their objective is to educate local folks that good governance -- as a vehicle to achieve socio-economic growth and political stability in the region -- can only be possible with public support and cooperation.

ARMM officials are keen on turning over, between 2015 to early 2016, to the government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front a reformed regional government and its accomplished projects, as a prelude to the region’s replacement with a new, MILF-led Bangsamoro political entity.

“Only by way of making the people understand the relevance of good governance, through effective dissemination of the ARMM’s reform initiatives and accomplishments, to peace-building in Moro communities will they realize that participatory governance is so important in nation-building,” Mawalil said.

He said the autonomous region will, in fact, upgrade its communication strategies to maximize the dissemination to the public of its accomplishments and in keeping with Gov. Mujiv Hataman’s policy of transparency and accountability in managing the affairs of the regional government.

“This means revitalizing the communication strategies since the old, traditional strategies of communicating with the ARMM’s mixed Muslim, Christian and highland communities may no longer be usable, or viable,” Mawalil said.

More than 50 information officers from different support offices and line agencies under the Office of the Regional Governor, touted as “ARMM’s Little Malacanang,” held last week in Davao City an “effective communications” workshop as an initial step to expanding the dissemination of the activities of the regional government.

The workshop delved on issues and concerns besetting the information thrusts of the ARMM and how modernization and the so-called “cyber age” brought in more convenient and readily available mediums that can connect the regional government to its constituents, communication-wise.

Mawalil said Kael de Lara Co, Malacanang’s undersecretary for communications, was among the speakers who provided participants vital insights during the workshop sessions in Davao City, which was bankrolled by the office of Hataman.

Amihilda Sangcopan, Hataman’s chief-of-staff, said they have been trying their best to be as prompt as they can in dispersing information about the activities of the regional government.

Sangcopan said Hataman has a standing directive to all regional secretaries and chiefs of different support offices to keep open all of their fiscal records to the public and the media in keeping with his administration’s policy of transparency and accountability.