CITIZENS AS STAKEHOLDERS:
CANA CONVERSATIONS
WITH COMMUNITIES
RED BATARIO
CENTER FOR COMMUNITY JOURNALISM
AND DEVELOPMENT
Why we do what we do
EMERGING CITIZEN
ACTIONS I N BASILAN,
SULU, TAWI-TAWI A N D
SIBAGAT, AGUSAN
DEL SUR
BA-SUL-TA
BA-SUL-TA

Civil society organizations monitoring government projects
implemented under the P8.5 billion Transition Investment
Support Plan (TISP) or Stimulus Fund for the ARMM

Part of ARMM road map for reform

Citizen participation crucial to successful implementation
(citizen monitors)

Huge challenges and obstacles (safety and security, political
expediencies, clan feuds, cultural norms)
Their
story
Despite
seeming
insurmountable
challenges ,
citizens of
ARMM still
want to be
counted in
 BASILAN -- Basilan Alliance for
Peace and Sustainable
Development
 SULU -- Integrated Resource
Development for Tri-People
 TAWI-TAWI -- Tarbilang
Foundation, Languyan Health
Family Association
We do what we do because we…
 Are emboldened by the President’s call for reforms
through his Daang Matuwid philosophy
 Want our voices heard so that we can contribute to
making our communities better and safer places to
live in
 Are tired of all the bad impressions other people
have about the ARMM
We do what we do because we…
 Cannot allow to slip away this opportunity for
helping root citizen participation in local governance
 Want to make sure that the money spent by
government (in the TISP project) goes to where it is
intended to
We are able to do what we do because…
 We are slowly being recognized by other citizens, sectors,
and the LGU as important in the work of governance
 The media (mainly community radio) are beginning to
closely work with us in discussing and airing the process
and results of our TISP monitoring
But we continue to grapple with…
 Safety and security issues
especially in Sulu and Basilan
 Strained resources (often
unable to cover many areas due
to logistical constraints e.g.
travel time from one
municipality to another
sometimes takes days)
 How to institutionalize our
efforts or the local mechanisms
that we’ve developed
SIBAGAT, AGUSAN DEL SUR
SIBAGAT, AGUSAN DEL SUR
 Previously listed as a “waterless” municipality (only
50 percent of population have access to safe water)
 Third class town with a total population of 30,000
(2007); 50 % are Indigenous Peoples (Manobo)
 Around 8,300 of the total population are considered
poor
Their
story
We wanted to
make sure that
the huge water
project being
implemented in
our town will
respect and
protect our
rights
 Building water integrity through the
IWAG (Integrity Watch for Water
Anti-Corruption Group)
 Water issues are related to abusive
political culture and control, weak
constituencies, and corruption
 20% of country’s annual budget is
lost to corruption, money that
otherwise could have gone to the
promotion, protection and
fulfillment of citizens’ right to water
– World Bank as cited by IWAG
 Organized through the UNDP-DILG
The
story of
IWAG
initiated Global Programme for
Anti-Corruption and Development
Effectiveness (PACDE): Building
Water Integrity – Mitigating
Corruption in Local Water
Governance through Public Finance
Process
 PACDE strategies: (1) building
integrity in local water governance;
and, (2) strengthening community
participation
The
story of
IWAG
PACDE Outputs:
 Develop a Citizens’ Guidebook to
Participatory Public Finance in
Water Governance
 Organize Citizen-Monitors for Water
Integrity (includes training on how
to review and assess public finance
processes in water governance)
 Local constituencies for good water
governance built from informed
networks of citizens especially
women and youth, water service
providers, academe, civil society and
faith-based organizations
We do what we do because…
 As citizens, we should claim our rights but at the same
time recognize our responsibility to ensure better
governance (“ ito yun LGU transparency and
accountability”)
 We want to make sure that we have safe, accessible,
affordable, acceptable water (“lisud kaayo access sa tubig
diri”)
 Women, children, persons with disabilities, indigenous
peoples should be directly involved in how water is
managed and governed
We do what we do because…
 We believe that governing the municipality should
involve all of us (“dili lang mga officials”)
We are able to do what we do because…
 Of the encouragement we get from fellow citizens
(“We hope you will expand your membership”)
 A local chief executive who considers IWAG as a
partner rather than as a critic and watchdog
 Support from agencies like DILG, UNDP
 Sibagat is a very peaceful community
But we continue to grapple with…
 Birthing pangs as we are still a
very young organization
(registered with the SEC
February 2013)
 How to keep everyone’s
enthusiasm and energy at a
sustained level given that our
work is generally tedious
(monitoring)
 Enhancing our advocacy even
more (“we have media partners
for IEC”)
But we continue to grapple with…
 How to develop our social marketing strategy and
skills
 How to institutionalize the IWAG as a citizen
participation mechanism (Mayor Thelma Lamanilao
is on her third term)
Some members of the Sibagat IWAG team
From the citizen action groups of
Basilan, Sulu, Tawi-Tawi, and
Sibagat, Agusan del Sur…
YOU’VE JUST HEARD OUR
STORY…WE HOPE
YOU WILL BE WITH US
IN WRITING
THE NEXT CHAPTER