San Nicolas wins ‘Galing Pook’ award anew

QUEZON CITY – Municipality of San Nicolas, Ilocos Norte’s best practice on cultural heritage was awarded as one of the 10 Most Outstanding Local Governance Programs in the entire Philippines during the Galing Pook Awards 2018 on Thursday, October 11.

This year’s entry “The Importance of Cultural Heritage Conservation and the Role of the Education Sector: A San Nicolas Experience” stressed the town’s concerted efforts to preserve and conserve its rich cultural heritage.

All local government units (LGUs) that participated in the competition underwent multilevel screening and were adjudged based on their “positive results and impact, their empowerment of the people, transferability and sustainability, innovation, and efficiency of their program service delivery.”

From 152 contenders, only 19 made it to the final panel interview. 10 were given awards after the rigorous process.

Vice President Leni Robredo graced the awarding ceremony where she was the keynote speaker. In her speech, she emphasized the vital role of LGUs in testing true leadership and good governance.

“This is precisely what this gathering is all about. It is our brave response to the call of the times: that there are still men and women disrupting the political scene by doing extraordinary things for our people, quietly, without much fanfare,” Robredo said.

In 2017, the town also made it to the 10 awardees with “Catching Rain” – a program that documented the importance of preserving and sustaining rain water which helps local farmers with their crops specially during dry season.

Galing Pook Awards is a prestigious awarding ceremony that searches and recognizes innovative practices of LGUs and is highly assisted by the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) and the Local Government Academy (LGA). – Rod Jerick R. Ribao