Santiago bags governance awards

MANILA, Philippines - The city government of Santiago in Isabela was recently awarded by the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) the Most Outstanding Implementer on Anti-Red Tape Program in the Cagayan Valley Region.

According to city mayor Amelita Navarro, the award confirms Santiago’s efforts in making the city government more accountable and transparent to its constituency by providing systems that make government transactions more efficient and effective.

She said that the city’s Citizens’ Charter, a product of the Public Service Excellence, Ethics and Accountability Program, is the first performance pledge in Region 2. The Charter made every office in the city government come up with procedures on expediting transactions and providing a public feedback mechanism. Moreover, 12 awards on outstanding barangay governance were also conferred on Rizal and San Andres, both barangays of the city.

Santiago was also accorded by the DILG the Seal of Good Housekeeping and the Gawad Pamana ng Lahi. It was also awarded by the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council the Gawad Kalasag (Kalamidad at Sakuna Laban, Sariling Galing ang Kaligtasan) for its best practices in disaster risk management.

Other national awards include the CROWN (Consistent Regional Outstanding Winner in Nutrition) Award, the Presidential Award for the Most Child-Friendly Cities, and the Galing Pook Awards for its Youth Servicing the Youth program.