In pushing vital reforms, oil firm looks to grassroots

SEAOIL’S Mark Yu (left) with Harvey Keh of the Ateneo School of Government

Sharing the Herculean responsibility of pushing for good governance and reforms is a task not too many people are eager to take.

For the ordinary Filipino, the grueling tasks and the cudgels expected to be borne from supporting such advocacies should be shouldered by huge private firms and multinationals, which have the resources that can move and instill significant changes in the system.

But Seaoil Philippines, the country’s largest independent fuel retailer, believes otherwise.

“Good governance is the responsibility of everyone. We cannot be bystanders in the country’s drive for reform. We believe in the multiplier effect that our grassroots approach can achieve,” says Mark Yu, chief financial officer for Seaoil Philippines.

Key to sustainability

This was why Seaoil Philippines joined the Ateneo de Manila University-School of Government and the Kaya Natin! Movement for Good Governance and Ethical Leadership, in launching a leadership training program for local government officials dubbed “Champions for Good Governance in Public Education.”

“Seaoil believes that everyone has to do his/her part in nation-building. It believes that corporate social responsibility is key to business sustainability,” Yu tells the Inquirer.

“We strongly support President Aquino’s thrust for good governance in the country. As such, we partnered with Ateneo and Kaya Natin’s Movement for Good Governance in launching the ‘Champions for Good Governance in Public Education’ initiative. This is in line with our advocacy of ‘Fueling a Better Future,’” he adds.

Harvey Keh, director for Youth Leadership and Social Entrepreneurship at the Ateneo School of Government, explains that the program was aimed at encouraging local government officials to develop innovative programs that will address basic education needs in their respective communities.

“We are aiming to invite 30 local government leaders from Luzon, 30 local government leaders from Visayas and 30 local government leaders from Mindanao to be part of this training program,” Keh says.

Empowering LGUs

The initiative, which will be divided into three phases and conducted every six months, is an 18-month leadership and good governance training program for leaders of 90 local government units across the country.

The Luzon training will be held in October at Antipolo, the Visayas training will be held in November in Cebu, while the Mindanao training this coming December will be held in Davao.

Ateneo will be responsible for developing the training materials, while Seaoil Philippines has been tasked to provide the logistics of the program, as well as possible funding for the projects.

“The focus of the training will be to empower LGU representatives to better manage its public schools. The program also offers the opportunity for Seaoil and the local [governments] to work together on specific programs to improve the service delivery of public education,” Yu says.

Funding projects

According to Keh, the first phase will focus on leadership development with particular emphasis on good governance, leadership with integrity and people’s participation.

The second phase will center on public education reform, wherein participants will look at and study the best practices being done by certain local government units and the Department of Education in different parts of the country.

The third phase, meanwhile, will be about social innovations, or helping officials develop innovative, responsive and sustainable programs that will help increase access and improve quality of education in their communities.

Keh says that at the end of the program, the local officials will present their project proposals to address problems in public education, the best of which will then be funded by Seaoil Philippines.

“Seaoil has allocated P10 million over the next three years to fund project proposals. Projects will be rated on its ability to inspire and sustain reforms necessary to improve the delivery of public education. Furthermore, consideration will be given to the depth and reach of the proposed programs,” Yu says.

Yu adds that, with this program, Seaoil Philippines hopes that it can help encourage more Filipinos to become “beacons of hope in our move towards good governance.”

Hope

“Hope, being a necessary precursor to change, must be coupled with proper education to effect reform. We believe the program’s grassroots approach of partnering with local government units to improve public school administration is essential in improving governance in the Philippines,” Yu further says.

“We hope to reach a tipping point wherein those who advocate good governance outnumber those who oppose it.”