The Presidential Commission for the Urban Poor (PCUP) eyes the establishment of satellite offices within city and municipal halls “to bring the government closer to the people, and let the urban poor feel its presence and services.”
In an interview over Radyo Pilipinas, PCUP research, planning and monitoring division chief Elsie Aradanas said their chairperson and chief executive officer, Undersecretary Elpidio Jordan Jr., wants to build a stronger partnership with the local government units (LGUs) “to enable PCUP deliver its mandate and the best public service to the country’s marginalized sector.”
“We saw that the LGUs play an important role in how we work together, do things together to benefit the urban poor,” Aradanas said.
“Moreover, together with the LGUs, under our new administration, we can let the people know PCUP’s banner programs,” she added.
According to Aradanas, Jordan initiated to organize and host its first LGUs Forum on Oct. 25 to present the agency’s projects for 2023 and programs for the upcoming Urban Poor Solidarity Week in December.
The new administration aims to reduce the country’s poverty rate to 9 percent by the end of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s term in 2028.
“We believe we can do it but the government cannot just do that alone. We need the help of the other agencies and the urban poor itself as a holistic approach. That is the very essence of the LGUs Forum,” Aradanas said.
She disclosed that there would be goodwill ambassadors from the business sector and the academe to partner with the PCUP in “helping uplift the lives of the poor.”
