‘NGOs suffering backlash from pork barrel scam’

MANILA, Philippines - The Filipina who recently won international awards for her volunteer work lamented that non-government organizations (NGOs) are now suffering a backlash from the pork barrel scam.

Alexandra Eduque, a volunteer for Habitat for Humanity who bagged the International Fundraising Conference Choice and the Outstanding Volunteer awards, said that NGOs are suffering from a stigma following the reported involvement of bogus NGOs as receivers of public funds for ghost projects.

“All of a sudden, all these NGOs have been generalized and stigmatized… If people only knew how painstaking it is to raise funds for a worthy cause,” Eduque said.

“I have a lot of friends who are also advocates and who are suffering. It’s not fair to be suffering from this when you are an NGO who is really doing something.

“That’s the sad reality of things. When one makes mistakes everyone else suffers,” she added.

The 23-year-old volunteer also admitted that the fundraising efforts of Habitat for Humanity have been affected by the pork barrel controversy because prospective donors are now asking more questions about the activities that NGOs are involved in.

“NGO? Isn’t that corrupt? You have to explain that it’s not the case,” she said.

“Instead of spending 30 minutes to meet a donor, it becomes one and a half hours because the rest of the 45 minutes will be spent explaining that it’s a worthy cause,” she added.

But Eduque said the pork barrel scandal would not discourage Habitat for Humanity volunteers from pursuing their advocacy of constructing decent shelter for the poor to promote their dignity.