Naga wins anew Galing Pook award

By Jason B. Neola MANILA --- LGU Naga’s Barangay eSkwela-Barangay Literacy Worker (BLW) program was adjudged one of the 10 outstanding governance programs during the 25th Galing Pook Awards held last October 11, this year. During the awarding ceremony, Naga City was privileged to be accorded with one more recognition when its entry on accessible and sustainable health care program for PWDs was chosen as one of the 19 finalists from 152 entries that were submitted by different local government units across the country. In her keynote address, Vice President Leni Robredo emphasized that “there is no shortage of bright ideas in our nation… but all the bright strategies in the world will not work without brave, audacious, and honest leaders… but all great leaders empower those around them to be great themselves.” She told the assembly that six years after her husband’s death, “Naga continues to flourish under Mayor John Bongat’s leadership, earning the city the honor of being consistently awarded as one of the most competitive cities in the country.” “I wish to honor Mayor Bongat for steering Naga to even greater heights during the last eight years,” she said. The eSkwela-BLW program is a comprehensive approach to promote education for out-of-school children, youth, and adults (OSCYAs), in partnership with the Department of Education and the Department of Information and Communications Technology. Ernani Suron, head of Education, Scholarship, and Sports Office, said the program, which offers ICT-enhanced educational packages under the Alternative Learning System, operates thru the Barangay eSkwela centers which were established in the city’s 27 barangays. Mayor Bongat, in his presentation before the Galing Pook National Selection Committee, said: “To supplement the efforts of the Barangay eSkwela program, the Barangay Literacy Program was introduced to bring together dedicated literacy volunteers at the barangay level to undertake literacy mapping and organize learning groups to encourage OSCYAs to enroll and/or re-enroll in ALS or to formal schooling.” Galing Pook finalist Comprehensive PWD Rehabilitation Program with focus on Community-Based Rehabilitation Approach serves as the city government’s facility for implementing its sustainable and accessible health care agenda for persons with disability. In an interview, Dr. Vito C. Borja, city health officer II, said the program intends to improve the quality of life of PWDs and their families by allowing them to meet basic needs and ensuring inclusion, participation and access to health and social services, as well as education and livelihood programs. “It introduced home-based patient management and therapy services as its main innovation,” he says. Naga, along with 5 other cities (Navotas, Cagayan de Oro, Iloilo, Tagum, and Valenzuela) and four trend-setting municipalities (Del Carmen in Siargao Islands, Surigao del Norte; Bindoy, Negros Occidental; Loboc, Bohol, and San Nicolas, Ilocos Norte) rounded up the top 10 LGUs.