DILG says Mandaue still performing despite “did not meet” mark in seal of good local governance

MANDAUE CITY, Philippines—The Mandaue City Government has scored a “did not meet” remark in all seven performance areas based on the 2018 assessment of the Department of Interior and Local Government’s (DILG) Seal of Good Local Governance (SGLG).

But DILG City Director Jao Lucero said this does not mean that Mandaue City has neglected its duties as a local government unit.

In the Governance Assessment Report (GAR) for 2018 issued by DILG in Mandaue City on Tuesday, April 30, Mandaue City was given a “did not meet” remark under the categories of financial administration, disaster preparedness, social protection, peace and order, business friendliness and competitiveness, environment management and tourism, and culture and the arts.

In a press conference, Lucero said that the city’s “did not meet” score in the SGLG performance areas does not mean that the LGU has not been performing its duties.

Lucero explained that the SGLG criteria, a tool that they use to assess remarkable government unit performance, is continuously evolving and upgrading its standards.

“For 2018, the SGLG elevated the assessment criteria from ‘four plus one’ to ‘all in.’ Previously, for an LGU to pass, they need to pass four core areas and at least one essential area. However, last year’s run is ‘all in’ [meaning] they have to pass all  areas of concern,” Lucero explained.

Based on the DILG report, Mandaue City passed in three out of seven indicators for financial administration; three out of 12 areas under social protection; and seven out of eight indicators under peace and order.

The city also passed four out of seven indicators in business friendliness and competitiveness; two out of five indicators in environmental management; and one out of two indicators under tourism, culture and the arts.

The city did not meet any of the 11 criteria under disaster preparedness.

Jay Basubas, chief of the City Disaster Risk Reduction and Management (CDRRM) Office of Mandaue City, said it was the lack of supporting documents that led to their “did not meet” score.

In an interview with CDN Digital, Basubas said the office had to “start from scratch” when he assumed office in May 2018 because there was no proper turnover of data from the previous CDRRM officer whom he replaced.

Basubas, however, said that they already worked on these points and have complied to most of the indicators under the disaster preparedness criteria.

Under the disaster preparedness performance area, the SGLG evaluated the LGU’s compliance on organizing a DRRM council, presence of a DRRM office, presence of early warning system, and organization of search and rescue teams and equipment, among others. / celr