Government to act on complaints within 72 hours

MANILA, Philippines — The Office of the Executive Secretary’s Strategic Action and Response Office and the Anti-Red Tape Authority (ARTA) yesterday signed an agreement requiring government agencies to answer complaints within 72 hours as part of efforts to improve the delivery of public services.

Strategic Action and Response Office Undersecretary Rogelio Peig II and ARTA director general Secretary Ernesto Perez signed the agreement at the Malacañang Premier Guest House.

The accord will set up a system to hold erring public officials accountable for failing to perform what is required of them.

“Under the MOA (memorandum of agreement), government agencies will be given 72 hours to respond and the 8888 Citizen Action Center (CAC) will act as the complainant,” Perez said.

“If there is no response from the government agency, the Anti-Red Tape Authority will investigate and, if necessary, after due process, file appropriate charges before the Office of the Ombudsman or the Civil Service Commission,” he added.

The 8888 hotline is a 24-hour platform that allows the public to report graft and corruption and slow processing of government functions, seek assistance and give recommendations to state agencies.

Peig said the agreement aims to make public officers more conscious of their responsibilities.

“We hope to achieve a prompt and efficient delivery of government services by making our public officers, especially in the frontlines, more mindful of their duty to serve the public and by giving them a subtle warning that their irresponsibility and indifference can be costly to them,” he said.

Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin said he expects similar agreements to be inked in the future with other agencies.

“The President is really hell bent on removing red tape and delays in the bureaucracy,” Bersamin said.

“As far as we can see it, this will be more for our reputation, the improvement of our reputation as bureaucrats if we are aggressive about these MOA signings within the executive branch of government,” he added.?

Created by the Ease of Doing Business and Efficient Government Service Delivery Act of 2018, ARTA is mandated to implement policies that will simplify processes in the bureaucracy and curb red tape.

With the signing of the MOA, 8888 CAC is now empowered to serve as a formal complainant to ARTA against unresponsive government institutions.

Failure to render government services within the prescribed processing time is a violation punishable with six months suspension for the first offense.

A second offense would mean dismissal and perpetual disqualification from public service.

The violation will prompt ARTA to issue a notice of warning to erring agencies, initiate investigation or file necessary cases to the Civil Service Commission, Office of the Ombudsman and other appropriate courts. – Louella Desiderio