Can we expect better public services?

Editorial

MALACAÑANG has issued Administrative Order (AO) 31 raising to “reasonable” levels fees and charges in all national government offices.  While the Palace insists that the new fees and charges would lead to improved services to the public, the knee-jerk reaction to the new directive has been negative, with accusations flying thick and fast that the government is utterly insensitive to the plight of ordinary people and that it amounts to “robbing the poor.”

A closer reading of the executive fiat, however, would reveal that

it is neither arbitrary nor unreasonable, as it clearly states that in the determination of rates and the imposition of new fees and charges, “a balance between recovering the cost of services rendered and the socioeconomic impact of their imposition shall be sought.”

Government agencies cannot arbitrarily impose higher fees as a Task Force on Fees and Charges consisting of the Department of Finance, the Department of Budget and Management and the National Economic and Development Authority would promulgate rules to implement and monitor compliance with AO 31.

The proof of the pudding is in the eating, however, and the public that would have to cough up additional cash from their pockets have every right to demand faster and more efficient, not to mention more courteous, services from the government.

It’s the overseas Filipino workers who will be among the first to feel the pinch of higher fees. OFWs are already being charged P15,000 to P30,000 for documentation needed for deployment formalities, on top of a placement fee equivalent to one-month salary of those deployed.

The existing fees cover an avalanche of requirements: authenticated birth certificate, National Bureau of Investigation clearance and authentication, authentication of school credentials, passport application or renewal, community tax certificate, Philippine Overseas Employment Administration processing fee, Pag-IBIG membership fee, PhilHealth premium from P900 to P2,400 starting January next year, Overseas Workers Welfare Administration membership equivalent to $25, among other  clearances  and forms.

It’s, therefore, understandable that OFWs, who seek greener pastures abroad because they cannot find jobs here or want higher-paying jobs, are up in arms over a possible increase in the fees charged by government for them to be able to leave.

The fee increases should be just and reasonable as to make them within the reach of those who are already economically hard up.

And the increased fees and charges should be properly accounted for and result in measurable, as well as tangible, changes in service delivery by government agencies. These changes should be duly reported to the public by the concerned agencies as part of their responsibility to ensure transparency and accountability.

The Aquino administration needs all the revenues it can generate to fund vital infrastructure and social services such as education and health. But increases in fees and charges of government agencies should be matched by a corresponding significant improvement in their services. That’s what just and reasonable means.