CSC to study rightsizing proposals with civil servant welfare, service delivery in mind

Published July 15, 2022 04:43 PM By SUNDY LOCUS,GMA News

The Civil Service Commission (CSC) on Friday said it would “thoroughly study” proposed measures on rightsizing the bureaucracy which could affect 2 million government employees.

CSC Chairperson Karlo Nograles said the commission “understands and accepts” the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic as well as the ill-effects of the current situation on “the health, the economy, and other factors that affect the life and livelihood” of Filipino workers.

“Therefore, the Commission supports any move that would ensure greater efficiency in public sector administration, and build an agile and future-ready civil service,” said Nograles in a press statement.

“The Commission assures everyone that it will thoroughly study any proposed legislation on rightsizing the bureaucracy, and provide its inputs, with the welfare of civil servants and the effective delivery of service to the public as its primordial considerations,” he added.

On Wednesday, the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) disclosed it was planning to ask Congress to give President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. authority to “rightsize” or trim down the bureaucracy to save funds.

DBM Secretary Amenah Pangandaman said they will be checking 187 agencies, departments, offices, and bureaus, including government-owned and controlled corporations —which employ an estimated two million personnel—for redundant or overlapping functions.

Those who will lose their jobs may apply again, Pangandaman added, as other government positions would likely open as part of the process.

Three lawmakers — Senators Loren Legarda, Sonny Angara, and Francis Escudero — were supportive of the proposal saying it was long overdue.

Senator Aquilino Pimentel III, however, argued that Congress should be the one to abolish the government entities and not the executive branch.

For her part, former Davao City Mayor and now Vice President Sara Duterte said that rightsizing was a “good move” though she doubted if it could be accomplished in the short term considering the difficulty of its implementation.

"Nahirapan nga kami sa LGU namin (We had a hard time implementing it in our city), all the more in the national government," said Duterte. — DVM, GMA News
 

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