The week starting Aug. 2 was declared NGO and PO Week (non-government organization, people’s organization) in 2004 by the provincial government, acting on the recommendation of NEGORNET, the province-wide network precisely of NGOs and POs.
NEGORNET itself was established in 1992 after a series of workshops on the newly-passed Local Government Code. That law included and codified an idea of direct democracy that is not necessarily a feature of other democratic systems of government: that civil society organizations have a role to play in governance, providing mechanisms for them to be part of government decision-making bodies.
All of this arises presumably out of the recognition that there are many vital areas of public interest and welfare that government cannot address because of an inadequacy of programs, personnel or funds, and where civil society organizations can make important contributions. NGOs provide services, POs work for the interests and welfare of their own members, mostly what are called “basic sectors” like farmers, fisherfolk, urban poor and the like.
Except for shorter teaching stints, NGO work has been the experience of most of my adult life. The satisfaction of NGO work lies in the freedom to conceptualize and design programs and projects, to set goals, to use resources for greatest results, to revise and re-invent programs as needed, without the bureaucratic constraints and delays that those in government often face. There are also the pleasures of comradeship with fellow-workers who aren’t there just to get a salary but who share the same convictions and ideals, who mourn and rejoice together over defeats and successes.
Very often NGOs pioneer areas of work that government hasn’t yet got round to like day-care services for the elderly, or community rehabilitation programs for children with disabilities, or educational and health programs for child sugar workers, or psycho-social and education programs for girl victims of sexual abuse. Some present government programs were preceded by NGO work in fact, for example in the areas of services for women or migrants. In other cases, government services exist but do not quite match the complexity or magnitude of the problems and intervention gaps remain.
NGOs face problems too: tight resources that must be made the best use of, most often requiring commitment and sacrifices from staff who receive lower than average wages; inadequate number of staff, and sometimes dismissive attitudes or even suspicion by government.
Local Government Code not withstanding, recognition and support for NGO and PO work remains mostly token, especially at LGU levels. The provincial government has allocated funds for the annual observance of NGO/PO week and the yearly Timbayayong award for three projects, but more sustained schemes could be imagined. In the case, for example, of the Tanjay day-care services for the elderly which may close for lack of funds, would it be conceivable for the city to enter into a contract whereby the city provides resources and the NGO manages the facility? Auditing, monitoring and other issues would need to be addressed of course, but the valuable work that NGOs and POs do warrant this effort, even a revision of laws if necessary. Do we need NGOs? Society would be worse off without them.