By STELA SULIT and MEL N. VELEZ
SAN FERNANDO – The Local Government Unit of San Fernando has once again made it to the circle of qualifiers for the most prestigious award on the Seal of Good Local Governance (SGLG) this calendar year 2023, alongside four (4) other municipalities in Bukidnon who snatched the said award, namely Manolo Fortich, Maramag, Kibawe, and Damulog.
Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) Secretary Benhur Abalos has urged the 493 Seal of Good Local Governance (SGLG) awardees this year to share their success stories with other local government units (LGUs).
Abalos made the call during the SGLG 2023 awarding rites at the Manila Hotel, last December 13-14.
He also asked them to espouse a culture of excellence among LGUs and ensure that no community will be left behind in the country’s thrust towards prosperity.
“Sa inyong 493 SGLG passers, nawa’y ibahagi po ninyo ang inyong kwento sa ating mga kapwa local officials,” he said.
“Kapag may mga pagtitipon at pagsasanay, nawa’y pag-usapan natin ang iba’t ibang paraan kung paanong mas magiging mahusay pa ang ating pamamahala,” he added.
Of the SGLG awardees this year, 28 are provinces, 64 cities, and 401 municipalities.
This year, the implementation of Republic Act No. 11292, or the SGLG Act, carries on with the “all-in” assessment approach, where the five mentioned LGU’s passed all ten (10) governance areas as follows: 1. Financial Administration and Sustainability; 2. Disaster Preparedness: 3. Social Protection and Sensitivity, 4. Health Compliance and Responsiveness: 5. Sustainable Education; 6. Business friendliness and competitiveness; 7. Safety, Peace, and Order; 8. Environmental Management, 9. Tourism, Heritage Development, Culture, and Arts; and 10. Youth Development.
San Fernando Mayor Rogelio C. Yeke is so grateful to all the agencies who, in one way or another, contributed to the resounding success of the municipality’s performance in the 2023 SGLG.
DILG 10 Regional Director Arnel Agabe said that SGLG assessment criteria continue to be upgraded and redefined to highlight the critical roles of our LGUs to encourage continual improvement in the services they are providing.
It is the honor of the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) Region 10 that our local government units took on the challenge of passing the seal this year, Agabe added.
Agabe commended the efforts made by the LGUs, saying that “beyond the recognition and incentives that the LGUs could get, being awarded with SGLG manifests that ‘good governance’ exists in their jurisdictions and they are able to provide excellent services for their constituents.
“We also salute our Matitino, Mahuhusay, at Maaasahang DILG field officers who went the extra mile in preparing their LGUs for the assessment with the support of their provincial and city directors,” he added.
All LGU awardees will receive an SGLG marker and an SGLG Incentive Fund of P4 million for provinces, P2.3 million for cities, and P1.8 million for municipalities.
The 2023 SGLG National Awarding Rituals was held at the Manila Hotel on December 13–14, 2023.
Performance measures are further upgraded to also gauge the result-oriented efforts of the LGUs.
As the Seal maintains its progressive nature, its response to various concerns in local administration and service delivery remains anchored on its thrust of giving distinction and incentivizing good performance.
DILG Secretary Benhur Abalos handed the big SGLG plaque to San Fernando Mayor Rogelio Yeke during the awarding ceremony
Bukidnon Dispatch 