Recognizing the important role of civil society organizations, Quezon City Mayor Joy Belmonte plans to intensify their involvement in crafting programs and plans for the city’s three million constituents.
“It would be best if we get our acts together with the people and the groups representing them to push their interest as we craft and outline our plans,” she said Monday.
“My style is to include the people toward a better life for them,” the mayor added.
Belmonte recently met with over 4,000 civil society organization members from Districts 1 to 6.
She cited the importance of their participation groups’ members, calling on other residents to join an organization that could advance their welfare and advocates their rights.
Belmonte said she was elated with the continuous growth of the CSOs, saying when she was still vice mayor, there were just around 1,000 registered organizations in Quezon City.
“Being part of an organization is one of the roles of an active citizen,” the city mayor said.
Belmonte said she also plans to pass a Freedom of Information ordinance to bolster her good governance initiative.
“We plan to make Quezon City as the first local government in Metro Manila to enact an FOI ordinance that will boost transparency and combat corruption,” she said.
The city government would put up Hotline 122 to pave the way for the residents to report any concern or complaint, she said.
The organizations, for their part, threw their full support behind Belmonte’s leadership and vowed to back her initiatives for the city’s development.
Belmonte said she takes to heart the role of CSOs because even as a fresh graduate, she joined the Jesuit Volunteers Philippines to help advance the need of far-flung and marginalized communities in Mindanao.