Vital Component

IN ANY viable organization, the human resource complement, the people manning the offices, are as important, if not more vital, as the firm's building, machinery, equipment and other physical facilities.

People are that important to, and in, an organization. Questions in this regard stick out though: are they properly motivated? If they are, are they adequately compensated? Of course, in any other organization, the staffing patterns differ, depending on the structure and orientation of the organizations. Undoubtedly, manpower is an entity's valuable asset and it is up to top management to tap or harness it to good and productive use.

Seminars, workshops, trainings, lectures and teach-ins are part of the development package for the workers or employees in order to keep them abreast of current trends and make them more prepared to meet the challenges of their work.

As in the law profession, which requires practicing lawyers to undergo the mandatory continuing legal education or MCLE, the officers and personnel from the Department of Education (DepEd) undergo continuous trainings and attend various seminars and symposia. One such office is the recently-established City Division of Schools of Mabalacat, housed at the old municipal hall building in Barangay Poblacion, Mabalacat City and is headed by the OIC-Schools Division Superintendent, Dr. Nicolas T. Capulong and assisted by Dr. Leonardo Canlas, Asst. Schools Division Superintendent. Other officers are: Rizza Bea Socorro Borres, Administrative Officer, Steve Valiao, Cashier Officer, Kristine Marie Santos, HRMO Personnel Officer, Dennis de Guzman, Supply Officer, Jennifer Sotto, Records Officer and Agnes Cunanan, Planning Officer. The rank-and-file are: Maria Cecilia S. Canlas, Erika Marie T. Pasamonte, Joseph Bennett A. Pangan, Ellaine M. Viar, Edna P. Gamboa, Josephine P. Aquino, Riza U. Policarpio, Allan Jay E. Cudia and Alexander D. Reyes.

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I'd like to thank the representatives of local employers and recruitment agencies who participated in the January 18th jobs fair, spearheaded by Peso Mabalacat at the covered court of the Dau Central Elementary School, as well as to the head of the dental and medical mission of the Philippine Air Force. Maraming salamat po.

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There was a published report in the Philippine Daily Inquirer issue of January 19th that the government has launched a system dubbed Philgeps Virtual Store, through which agencies can buy supplies online and without using cash. Reportedly, the service is being offered through the Philippine Government Electronic Procurement System with support from LandBank. Would this mean efficient delivery of much-need office supplies?  Or would there be the usual bureaucratic red tape?
Able Pnoy dog Butch Abad, budget secretary, confidently described the scheme as "a groundbreaking feat for the Philippine bureaucracy considering reforms that the Aquino administration has been pushing over the last two years. He adds: The establishment of the e-payment system effectively brings us to the realm of cashless transactions, where procurement activities can be tracked and accounted very quickly and accurately". Nicely said, Mr. Secretary, but can this be done at the local levels?

We should all recall that Republic Act No. 9184 or the Government Procurement Reform Act mandates NGAs and state-run corporations, financial institutions and universities and colleges as well as local government units to use Philgeps and its functionalities. If this is being followed to the letter, well and good. If it is not, well, what else is new?