Lesson 2: Government services

• Tell that each member of the community has the right to be provided with services

from the community

•  Give examples of services that are provided in response to the rights of every

member in the community

• Explain the effects of providing and not providing services on the life of the people

in the community

The barangay is the smallest unit of the government. It promotes thewelfare of its members. It plays an important role for the communitymembers to have a better life. It has the responsibility to provide basic services to the people. The delivery of basic services is a mandate of the community officials. The ways these are provided depend on the kind of elected leaders who were voted by the members of the community. These services are anchored from the programs of the city/municipal government and national governments.

1. Health Services

People should be given health services by the government. Through the Department of Health (DOH), the government provides various health care services nationwide. There are hospitals that provide free medical services. In municipalities, there are health care services nationwide. There are health centers that give free checkups, medicine, vaccines, and laboratory examinations.

• The Philippine General Hospital, East Avenue Medical Center, National Children’s Hospital, Jose R. Reyes Memorial Medical Center, and San Lazaro Hospital are some of the government hospitals that provide medical services.

• Barangay Health Centers

The head of the municipal or city’s health center is a doctor who leads the other members of the health team in conducting the health programs of the government in the health centers of the barangays in the city/ municipal government. Such programs include preventing the spread of transferable diseases like tuberculosis, measles, and chicken pox, and outbreak cases like

dengue, malaria, AH1N1 virus, and others. In this way, the government could attend to the health needs of the people and healthful living could be sustained in the community.

2. Peace and Order

• A peaceful community has the capacity to be progressive. The government maintains peace and order through the Philippine National Police (PNP) and the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP). The police officers protect the people from crimes, conflicts, and harm. They catch criminals and those who disturb peace and order.

•  The traffic police officers see to it that people obey traffic rules.

• The barangay tanod helps the traffic police officer maintain the smooth flow of traffic. They also help police officers keep peace and order in their community.

• The soldiers protect the country from foreign invaders. They also fight rebels who threaten the government.

They protect the country’s boundaries against those who want to take them. They are always ready to fight for the country.

• The National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) is the agency that helps investigate crimes committed in the country.

3. Education

The constitution states that the government should provide free education to every Filipino. The government establishes schools that provide free elementary, secondary, and tertiary education to Filipinos. There are also private schools that give education to children. These private schools should be recognized and allowed to operate. 

• The Department of Education (DepEd) is the agency tasked to provide the educational service to the people. Schools

emphasize the development of love of country, self-discipline, sciences, and technical and vocational skills.

Children are not only taught to read, write, and solve problems, but also  values and attitude that will make them responsible citizens.

Vocational and technical education is an important aspect of the educational program of the government. The enrollees in this program should have finished a secondary program. The primary aim of this program is to develop a strong workforce of skilled m manpower like technicians, electricians, and mechanics. Vocational and technical schools are opened to

give skills training to the youth in the courses they have chosen. If Filipinos are all educated, we could all work together to improve our standard of living and help improve our economy.

4. Social Welfare

• The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) is created by the government to support the needs of poor Filipinos. In times of floods, earthquakes, and other calamities, the agency is responsible for giving aid to the disaster victims. The social workers also protect children who are violators of crimes, and take care of children who have committed crimes orhave been abandoned by their parents. The social workers also help those who cannot buy their basic needs through programs and projects of the government. They see to it that those who are poor will get the basic services offered by the government.

5. Housing

The growing number of informal settlers is a big problem of the government. There are resettlement areas for informal settlers and victims of calamities. Low-cost housing projects are built in assistance with Government Service Insurance System (GSIS), Social Security System (SSS), and Pag-IBIG Fund. These agencies give housing loans with low interests.

The six two-storey residential units in Sitio Pasacola, Barangay Nagkaisang Nayon in Novaliches, Quezon City—part of the People’s Plan in-city housing—are to house 104 families.

6. Justice

The government provides Filipinos with free legal counsel of lawyers through the Public Attorney’s Office (PAO). Those who cannot pay a lawyer to defend them in court can ask for free legal assistance from the government. Lawyers who are working in the PAO give their legal services for free because the government pays them. Before going to PAO, the people in the community can go to a barangay hall/office to be enlightened on the issues at hand. There is a committee that accommodates complaints of the community members. This is the Lupon ng Tagapamayapa. The Lupon listens and processes the erring groups or families. Once and for all, the committee wants the families in the community to always be at peace with one another.

The government can lead the Filipinos to their goal to have a better life.

Elected leaders or officials should help their countrymen meet their basic

needs. They should see to it that these basic services are served well.

ACTIVITY 1

ACRONYMS 

Write the meaning of the following Acronyms 

1. PAO        - JUSTICE                                                  SOCIAL

2. NBI                     PEACE AND ORDER

3. PNP                                 HOUSING

4.DOH                                   JUSTICE

5. AFP                                   HEALTH

6. DEPED                           EDUCATION 

7. GSIS                         SOCIAL 

8. SSS

9. DSWD

10. PAGIBIG 

ACTIVITY 2 

A. Answer the following questions:

1. What basic services are available in the community for its members?

2. How important are the roles of barangay officials in delivering these

services?

3. Why did the national government create the different agencies like

DOH, DSWD, DepEd, DOJ/PAO, PNP/AFP, and TESDA?

4. How do these basic services help improve the people’s way of living?

5. Who should benefit from the services in the community?