Education Secretary Armin Luistro breezed into Negros Oriental last week and shared practical solutions to beat the government bureaucracy.
In a forum with education officials in the province in Bais City, Secretary Luistro encouraged everyone to think out of the box in solving some of the most pressing problems in one of the biggest government agencies in the country.
“Don’t wait for the budget.”
Luistro told the Division Superintendents, Supervisors and Principals to do what they can locally and institute changes in their own immediate sphere of influence, provided notice is given to the Municipal/City Mayor and their respective Division Superintendents. This is probably one of the best advices he gave last week, especially because the topic was on relocating schools from disaster-prone areas.
The Education Secretary reminded principals that their primary duty is to ensure the safety of their pupils and teachers.
Too often, government operations are hampered by the bureaucracy that was instituted, in the first place, to improve operations. “Don’t wait for the budget” may be an expression that goes beyond the phrase itself. It could mean “Do it today” or “Don’t expect anyone else to do it for you”.
If government officials keep “waiting for the budget” before they move, they might as well be waiting for Godot. It may never come at all.
