Bagong Pilipinas Serbisyo Fair planners renew pitch: Institute program

FILE PHOTO: Members of the House of Representatives attend the Bagong Pilipinas Serbisyo Fair in Tagum City, Davao del Norte, on Friday, June 7, 2024. According to the Office of Speaker Martin Romualdez, P913 million worth of government services, cash, and in-kind assistance have been set aside for 250,000 beneficiaries of the province. | PHOTO: Gabriel P. Lalu/ INQUIRER.net

MANILA, Philippines — Bagong Pilipinas Serbisyo Fair (BPSF) organizers have repeated their call for the filing of a bill in Congress that would institutionalize the project and ensure the capabilities of local offices to implement its activities.

BPSF National Secretariat head and House of Representatives Deputy Secretary General Sofonias Gabonada Jr. said they have already informed Speaker Ferdinand Martin Romualdez about the possibility of crafting a “Bagong Pilipinas Bill.”

He explained that if such a bill is enacted into law, a Bagong Pilipinas Serbisyo Center and Bagong Pilipinas Tulong Centers will be established to facilitate smoother transactions and more efficient delivery of government programs.

“Well, we are proposing to the Speaker, to the House Speaker this morning that we craft a proposed act under the Bagong Pilipinas Bill,” Gabonada told reporters in an interview before the BPSF Agency Summit at the PICC in Pasay City started Monday, Aug. 19.

READ: Bagong Pilipinas Serbisyo Fair extends aid to 253,000 Eastern Visayas folk

“There, we can put up Bagong Pilipinas Serbisyo Centers, Bagong Pilipinas Tulong Centers, and create a mechanism where agencies can talk and discuss the convergence of the programs.  Because there are really government programs that need different agencies to implement or maximize so that the government’s resources are fully utilized,” he added.

According to Gabonada, the institutionalization of BPSF can be labeled as an itemized program in the government’s annual budget.

“So, by that bill, I think, we can ensure that there will be adequate funding for it, there will be a proper system and implementation of the Bagong Pilipinas Serbisyo Fair,” he noted.

READ: Bagong Pilipinas Serbisyo Fair launched, aims to serve 400,000 Filipinos

The BPSF is brought to different provinces – 21 provinces as of Aug. 19 – so that people from far-flung areas can receive aid from the government, or access different government services and programs.

However, concerned government offices utilize their respective funds to currently support the initiative.

So far, according to Gabonada, more than P10 billion worth of assistance were provided to 2.5 million families across the 21 BPSFs – way above their initial target of 1 million families.

Gabonada said they hope Romualdez and President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. would grant their request.

“We are targeting, hoping that the President and the House Speaker and the entire Congress allow our request in terms of budget allocation, that we place Bagong Pilipinas Serbisyo Centers in each province, where all agencies would be housed so that people not find it hard to access government services,” he said.