The Code of Conduct and Ethical Standards for Public Officials and Employees(RA6713) and The Administrative Code of 1987 (EO No. 292) call for high standard of ethics in public service and insure and promote the Constitutional mandate that appointments in the public service shall be made only according to merit and fitness. In order to promote awareness to these laws, the MPA program thru the PA 208 – Philippine Administrative System class of the Ateneo de Naga University Graduate School, in coordination with the Center for Local Governance held a “Forum on Accountability of Public Functionaries” on 4 October 2019 at the Bro. Richard Michael Fernando, S.J. Hall, Ateneo de Naga University.

The forum is aimed at orienting and enhancing the knowledge of government employees, the public sector and the academe on the highlights of the “2017 Omnibus Rules on Appointments and Other Human Resource Actions (ORAOHRA).” The ORAOHRA, a civil service commission resolution, serves as the guiding principles in carrying into effect the provisions of the Civil Service Law.

The Director of the Civil Service Commission Field Office Camarines Sur, Dir. Maria Dolores D. Salud, provided important insights on the highlights of the ORAOHRA. Specifically, the General Policies on Appointments, Employment Status, and Nature of Appointment as well as Human Resource actions were discussed during the half-day activity. The participants, mostly government employees from different government agencies and HR officers of local government units actively participated in the discussion by asking relevant questions. The various actual scenarios and issues concerning human resource were tackled and explained with ease by the esteemed guest.

At the end of the forum, participants were delighted to know the salient points embedded in the omnibus policies on appointment of government employees. True enough, as shared during the forum, people are not the most important assets but the right people are. The discussions on public accountability had always been a timely and relevant topic especially in these recent times where accountability of public servants is being tested; public servants through this forum are reminded of the time-honored principle that “public office is a public trust.”

Gracing the forum are Dr. Malu C. Barcillano, Program Director of the MPA and MPA Cluster, and Atty. Antonio Ricardo P. Tejada, MPA faculty, while Jocel l. Magistrado of the MPA Program assisted the flow of the program as the Master of Ceremony.

by Al Enrique B. Delos Santos