Secretary Puno bids DILG farewell after productive four-year stint

By MYLES JOSEPH E. COLASITO
June 29, 2010

TACLOBAN CITY  –  Secretary Ronaldo Puno of the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) yesterday thanked his fellow officials and employees for “the four most productive years” of his career and bade them farewell as he embarks on a new life as a private citizen on June 30.

Puno, who was appointed by President Arroyo as DILG Secretary in 2006, said that whoever takes over his post under the new administration will “find that the Department is in good shape” because of the initiatives it has undertaken on his watch to strengthen local governance, better maintain peace and order and enhance public safety.

He shared his accomplishments as Secretary with the men and women of the Department, saying that the array of capacity building programs for the local government units and the groundbreaking projects to boost the capability of the Philippine National Police and the other attached agencies of the DILG would not have been possible without their cooperation, hard work and perseverance.

“Once again, thank you to all of you. Thank you for the great experience. Thank you for the four most productive years of my life,” Puno said during a thanksgiving get-together organized in his honor by the DILG’s officials and employees at the Camp Crame Multipurpose Center in Quezon City.

Puno started his career in the government service at the DILG 36 years ago as one of its youngest assistant secretaries. He also served as its Undersecretary and later, as Secretary, during the Estrada administration.

Puno is credited with having competently steered the DILG through its most difficult challenges and having inspired its men and women to work harder in serving their fellow Filipinos.

On Puno’s watch, the budget of the DILG increased by 44% from P43.6 billion in 2006 to P62.9 billion in 2009, which allowed it to implement programs and projects to strengthen local autonomy; hire more policemen and public safety officers; procure additional equipment to better maintain peace and order; and increase the salaries and pensions of its rank-and-file.

On the local government front, among a few of Puno’s most notable accomplishments were improving the capability of LGUs in addressing calamities and cutting red tape; and the implementation of the single biggest road project in the countryside under the P3.8 billion Australia-funded Provincial Road Management Facility; and the P704-million Local Government Support Program - Local Economic Development (LGSP-LED) project, which helps LGUs enhance the exercise of their corporate powers. Further, training programs for new officials in 2007 and 2010 were updated and revised to be responsive to the clients’ needs.

On the other hand, DILG-8 Regional Director Francisco C. Jose echoed Secretary Puno’s hopes that the DILG would continue to be supported by the incoming administration “as one of the important pillars of peace, growth and stability.”

Under Secretary Puno’s leadership, the Department adopted for nationwide implementation the Local Legislative Awards, which started in Eastern Visayas in 2001. Several local government units in the region also won recognition in various award-giving bodies in the same period. Likewise, a new DILG regional office was completed in 2007 with the help of Secretary Puno in place of the one that was razed by a fire in December 2004.

Speaking during the program “[in] my last speech, I think, as a public servant,” Puno quoted the late Sen. Edward “Ted” Kennedy of America in describing the experiences he had shared with his DILG family during his four-year stint at the Department. “Let me say a few words to all those who have supported me….To quote Sen. Ted Kennedy: ‘There were hard hours on our journey and often we sailed against the wind. But always we kept our rudder true, and there were many of you who stayed the course and shared our hope. You gave your help, but even more, you gave your hearts,’ ” Puno said.