The Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) urged the provincial and local government units (LGUs) in Negros Oriental to maximize the use of their respective development funds.

DILG provincial director Farah Gentuya said 20 percent development funds of these LGUs for 2022 have been underutilized.

“Many of the LGUs have reported under-utilization of their respective development funds, with only about five percent utilized for various programs and projects,” Gentuya told the Philippine News Agency.

These development funds include gender and development, disaster response, marginalized sectors and many others.

Some of the reasons for the under-utilization of funds include delayed implementation of calendared projects, obligated funds that have not been paid yet, such as to contractors, the COVID-19 situation, and also the transition phases in the provincial government from one governor to another.

All provinces, cities and municipalities are being assessed on their performance based on 10 indicators or governance areas under the Seal of Good Local Governance (SGLG).

The DILG implements the SGLG under Republic Act 11292 and is now in its second year of implementation.

The LGUs are being assessed on structures that should be in place, programs and projects implemented, financial administration, and compliance with Commission on Audit’s (COA) requirements, among others.

Some of the governance areas include environment, tourism, health, youth, and education.

The DILG-7 assessment team, headed by Assistant Regional Director Loiselle Lucino, conducted a regional onsite assessment of the SGLG in Negros Oriental, held at the convention center in Dumaguete City.

The towns and cities of Negros Oriental have already been assessed, Gentuya said.

Gentuya said that if an LGU is given the SGLG, “it means that you are compliant with all the minimum requirements of the law, such as giving basic services to the people, proper implementation of programs and projects, transparency and accountability, to name a few.”

She called on the LGUs to maximize these funds as saving them would “not be healthy” as these are supposed to be used to benefit the people.

The savings can still be used for development projects but cannot be utilized for other purposes such as the giving of additional Christmas bonuses, she added. (PNA)