March 29, 2024

The city council approved Ordinance 15, s. 2021 or the “Baguio City Safer Internet Day for Children Ordinance” intended to protect children from undue and improper influences of unreliable information and misuse of digital platforms accessible in the Internet.
The ordinance complies with Department of the Interior and Local Government Memorandum Circular 2020-013 enjoining all local government units to institutionalize measures to promote better and safer Internet use for everyone and to raise awareness on online issues faced by children.
The measure raises precaution to the public of the allowed and acceptable use of the Internet, most especially to children/youth, who are easy prey because of their curiosity and innocence.
Safer Internet Day is supported by various activities provided in Ordinance 74, s. 2009 or the Children’s Welfare and Protection Code, as amended by Ordinance 86, s. 2020, which include: a. Consultation with children and youth leaders, representatives, and organizations on the ASEAN Declaration on the Protection of Children and Online Abuses and Exploitation; b. Announcement of Safer Internet Day for children through information-education campaign in schools and barangays; and c. Orientation on preventing child pornography.
The city government will conduct activities related to the promotion of a safer Internet environment for children in coordination with other government agencies and civic groups to help in the awareness campaign. These government agencies include the Department of Education-City Division Office, the Department of Information and Communications Technology and the Inter-Agency Council Against Child Pornography.
An amount of P100,000 was appropriated by the City Youth Development Office under the City Social Welfare and Development Office to be used for the celebration.
The council also approved Ordinance 14, s. 2021, which entitles barangays a 70 percent share from penalties and fines collected from violations of the Anti-Road Obstruction Ordinance.
The ordinance aims to strengthen Administrative Order 116, s. 2016 and Administrative Order 197, s. 2016, including the establishment of a clear-cut policy in the use of the share and the grant of cash incentive to deputized barangay enforcers.
Through AO 116, the Anti-Road Obstructions Task Force was created to implement Ordinance 7, s. 1984 or the Traffic Code.
This was followed by AO 197, s. 2016, which deputizes barangay-based enforcers to help implement the Traffic Code. The AO also provides a 70-30 sharing scheme on collections of fines and fees for violation of the city’s Anti-Road Obstruction.
The share of each barangay will be deposited in a trust fund. The fund will be used for the costs of inspection and enforcement, allowances for meals and transportation, meetings of barangay officials and enforcers, seminars and trainings, procurement of equipment, tools, gears, and the like, incentive for deputized enforcers, and other expenses associated with the implementation and enforcement of the “Operation Anti-Road Obstructions.”
Seventy percent of the amount of the corresponding penalty paid by a violator will be apportioned where the equivalent of 20 percent will accrue to the deputized enforcer who did the apprehension as an incentive.
The remainder of the proceeds from penalties collected, after deducting the amount of incentive that will accrue to the deputized enforcer will form part of the trust fund of the barangay.
To collect and use the barangay shares, the deputized barangay enforcers shall first secure from the City Treasury Office a traffic citation ticket; the barangay council concerned shall determine how the trust fund will be used.
Disbursement of the trust fund shall be supported by a barangay council resolution.
In Ordinance 13, s. 2021, P4.812 million was allocated for the increase of monthly allowances, from P500 to P1,000, of all barangay health workers and barangay nutrition scholars effective January 2021.