Some 1,800 information officers from all regions in the country gathered in Davao City for the first National Information Convention 2018 last month.
The event, with the theme, “Spurring National Development and Empowering Communities through Information,” was organized by the Presidential Communications Operations Office to encourage communicators to effectively convey the national development agenda to the public.
The participants in the three-day convention, who included representatives from national and local media, digital media, academe, local government units, NGOs and the technology industry, pledged to actively disseminate factual information while upholding transparency, and to combat misinformation and ‘fake news.’
Day One of the conference focused on key government programs and policies; nurturing a safe and healthy media environment; and raising the bar of governance. Day Two centered on developing and promoting responsible communications with a dynamic strategy. Day Three focused on the launching of a communicators’ network and digital applications, including DU30 App, the main online link to Filipinos worldwide that gives access and updates on government programs and activities.
Summing up the results of the meeting, Presidential Communications Secretary Martin Andanar said: “Everything that I envisioned, this entire convention, I imagined it exactly to look like this. We all think alike. I believe each one who was appointed by the President as heads of agencies, we are all on the same wavelength. It’s great to have a working team like this, how close we are, bringing the level of government services to a higher notch. Bringing government broadcasting back to its quality competitive edge is already a legacy of the President.”
Under the Duterte administration, the PCOO supervises the a number of offices, including the Philippine Information Agency, People’s Television Inc., Philippine Broadcasting Service-Radyo Pilipinas, Philippine News Agency under the News and Information Bureau, National Printing Office, APO Production Unit, Bureau of Communication Service, Radyo-Television Malacañang and the Office of the Secretary Media.
With its broad reach, PCOO must be efficiently managed. Andanar welcomes the daunting challenge. The former multi-awarded newscaster, voice-over talent of TV5 and head of News5 Everywhere, who comes from a family of public servants, is grateful to President Rodrigo Duterte for giving him the opportunity to enter public service.
“I think my more than 20 years of experience in broadcast and my academic studies have prepared me to serve the country,” he pointed out.
Andanar explained that his priority as Presidential Communications Secretary is to strengthen the media platforms of government. Hence, PCOO is trying to improve the ratings of government-run AM and FM radio stations and increasing the reach of PTV-4. “We will just keep pushing the envelope until we get there,” he said.
“When we started, we didn’t even have a social media side. PNA now has a social media newscast with increased viewership to more than 40 thousand followers. Our website has also been refurbished; and we have a mobile site application. Our FM 2 is already number one from zero rating in less than 15 months. You can listen to the quality; you can view the quality—it’s like BBC. FM 1, the first time government is utilizing the frequency 87.5, this radio station is for the youth.”
With the advent of Digital Terrestrial Television Broadcasting, Andanar said, PCOO is a trailblazer in the digital platform in partnership with Japan’s Ministry of Information. Last January, he led the ceremonial switch to digitalize the state-run PTV-4, currently undergoing a six-phase modernization program to make it at par with international counterparts.
“We’re building the infrastructure of PTV from a transmission of 25 thousand to 55 thousand watts. Then by June, July or August, we are hoping to broadcast at 120,000 watts to a broader audience. Davao will be broadcasting in digital. Some parts of Manila are already broadcasting in digital. We’ll have it in Naga, in Guimaras, in Cebu,” he explained.
He cited other changes under the new administration: “The NPO never had a brand-new printing machine since the time of Erap. Last year we bought a new printing machine. This year we’re buying another printing machine. The modernization of the National Printing Office will continue. We only have three government printing offices, Bangko Sentral, NPO, and APO Production Unit. You will see NPO four years from now, it will be high-tech with a new building.”
For this year, PCOO has an approved 2018 budget of PHP1.351 billion, which is P20 million less than last year’s budget.
“We are realigning and refocusing the vision of our broadcast communications so that we can show the people what the government is doing. We also have the Presidential Communications Media and RTVM, and soon we will be broadcasting through satellite. The PCOO will bring the first government satellite network in the Philippines. So all this will happen this year. It’s going to be really fast,” he said.
Andanar often finds himself a target of bashers, especially in social media, for his off-the-cuff remarks. “I am active in monitoring social media because that’s my job. I want to know where the President is on social media. I do not answer my bashers, I just let them be. I don’t mind, I don’t care. My eyes are focused on the projects we are doing,” he replied.
“Look, I am not a politician, if I were, I’d promptly answer back. I see myself as a technocrat. I just want to do a good job as long as the President wants me here. I want to do the best today because tomorrow I might not be here anymore. The President might fire me tomorrow. So even if he does, I’m not guilty of not doing anything. I did my best. That’s my motto in life,” he clarified.
“What’s important is that government social media is going very strong. It has expanded from 10,000 to 1.3 million followers, the largest engagement – PTV from 50,000 followers to almost 1.4 million followers. If you look at the analytics of the top ten influencers of the President, social media is growing fast,” he added.
Andanar believes that a critical media will keep them on their toes: “I don’t see it as ‘us’ against ‘them’. That’s why we need to have a good media relations department apart from our public relations department. You know, when you’re working for a President like Duterte na puro siya (he is all) action, action, action, you really see empirical evidence of what he has done from the first month all the way to the 19th month — daghan kayo (so many) accomplishments. It’s not difficult for me to handle or manage the President’s media or communications team,” he said.