March 29, 2024

From contact tracing czar to ambassador of discipline.
The regional Department of the Interior and Local Government has chosen Baguio Mayor Benjamin Magalong as its poster boy for the campaign that sought to further raise public appreciation on the value of discipline, especially during the Covid-19 pandemic.
The DILG-Cordillera launched on July 22 the Disiplina Muna advocacy, a strategy adopted by the agency in pushing for good governance and in ensuring the citizen’s participation in government initiatives towards nation-building.
Magalong was named the Disiplina Muna ambassador of the Cordillera in light of the brand of leadership he championed since he assumed as Baguio’s chief executive and his response to the Covid-19 pandemic.
He said the discipline he cultivated through his military training, coupled with the public’s compliance to the protocols laid down to protect them, have helped a lot in the fight against the Covid-19 infection.
“By our collective sense of discipline, we are doing not just the right things but doing these in the right way. We follow the health protocols like we had the virus in ourselves, thus disciplining ourselves to exercise prudence rather than carelessness, caution rather than being carefree, and character over sheer camaraderie,” Magalong said.
Magalong was earlier named the country’s contact tracing czar, courtesy of the innovations he introduced in tracing people who have had close contacts with Covid-19 patients.
The Disiplina Muna campaign espouses the programs of the DILG and is anchored on seven pillars that the agency wants local government units and concerned agencies to adopt in coming up with programs or activities to promote discipline. These are the road clearing, disaster preparedness and resilience, anti-smoking, ease of doing business, liquor ban, environmental or tourist spot cleanup, and the anti-drug abuse advocacy.
DILG-Cordillera Director Marlo Iringan said the intents of these programs could only be achieved with the help of a disciplined citizenry as well as discipline among public servants.
He said good governance is a function of discipline.
“In government service, it takes discipline to fight the urge to dip one’s fingers in funds that are not yours. In the fight against drugs, it takes discipline to fight the urge to take drugs. In the fight against Covid-19, discipline is our best defense against the infection,” Iringan said. – Jane B. Cadalig