By Atty. Antonio P. Pekas
Last August 2, 2018 I was walking at Wright Park going to the DENR. It was about 10:30 or right after my hearing at theMunicipal Trial Court in Itogon, Benguet. Then a well built guy holding a manila envelope called my attention, Attorney are you going to the DENR?
Yes, I am.
He continued, the people there are having a meeting with a politician. They will start attending to people at 1:00 p.m. So we sauntered over to a nearby coffee shop to pass the time away. Then I realized I could not wait so I said goodbye to the guy. My intention was to go back another day.
I was supposed to go to the DENR to have certified true copies of some approved survey plans for a client. So I went back August 6, 2018. I already acquired the blueprints of the plans I wanted at the Records Section at the basement of the new DENR building and it was already “dry sealed” and countersigned there. I just needed one final signature, as I already paid the lawful fees, for the plans to qualify as certified true copies.
But the lady who received the plans for that last signature said I had to wait as the officer who was supposed to sign it was in a meeting with an ARD—which I took to mean Assistant Regional Director. “And I have to wait?” I asked angrily. “Nobody else could sign those plans?” It turned out that nobody else could sign them when they were already dry-sealed and counter-signed at the Records Section. Since I already waited for more than one hour, I again I angrily said, “My time as an ordinary citizen is as valuable, if not even more valuable, than any officer here.”
I even asked the lady where the office of the Regional Director was so I could go and complain. She pointed to where the office was. So I went there to complain only to be told—without any refinement—that the RED was out of town. So I demanded, “When is he coming back so I could come back and complain?” The ladies there just said, again without any refinement, that they did not know.
The ladies could have asked for my cellphone number so they could text me when he would be available. But nothing of that sort. The boss was out and that was that. Yes, the head of the office did not leave any information with his staff when he would be back. What a way to run an office.
Or perhaps, he did not care about ordinary citizens just like me. What a shame when the PDu30 administration is trying its best to please ordinary citizens.
Considering that I had an appointment in the office, I had to leave the DENR offices after waiting for more than an hour, and went back to get the lousy plans the next day. When I went back, it was Mr. Degay who silently handed the plans to me. Just like that. He could have said “sorry” (or anything to that effect as indigenous culture would have required) for making me wait the day before for more than an hour. But nothing.
I don’t like to blame Mr. Degay or any employee or officer there. I blame the typical “bad culture” in government offices. The attitude is always like, “to hell with you, ordinary citizens. If you have to wait for hours, you have to wait.” That is one.
Another is the pure incompetence which resulted in what I had gone through. Somebody could have been assigned to sign for Mr. Degay if he was not there. If he was in a meeting he could sign a few documents there. After all, the plans I was getting were already dry-sealed and counter-signed at the Records Section.
If there was anyone to blame at the DENR, the buck stops with the RED. If he ever thought of efficiency in running an office, he should have called all section chiefs when PDu30 became president to study all processes and identify those that are making life difficult for the ordinary citizens and do something about these. If he never thought about that, perhaps it is time for him to resign.
Sine this space has run out, I will continue regarding more inefficiencies at the DENR next issue. There are quite a number. I will also touch on the National Greening Program. I was once the legal consultant of the past Contract Reforestation of the DENR Central Office when my contemporaries at the UP Los Banos were running it so I am quite interested on how things are being done now. As I heard, incompetence is the word. How about corruption?
This piece was also meant to lead the example for other ordinary citizens to voice out complaints against bureaucrats in all agencies. And when one complains it is best to send a copy to the head office of the agency and to the Presidential Management Staff. With so many complaints, something will happen.**
