Travel policies for local government officials to be reviewed

The Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) on Wednesday said the agency will review the policies regarding government-funded travels for local government officials including the Sangguniang Kabataan (SK).

In a statement, the DILG said Secretary Jonvic Remulla suggested that it may be time to reassess the current guidelines, pointing out that government-funded travel should serve a “legitimate purpose.”

"Maybe it's time to review the policy to ensure that all travel, if government-funded, is legitimate and serves a specific purpose," Remulla said.

"We need to carefully examine the language, particularly when it comes to where the funds should or should not come from…We also need to specify the clearances required for such trips,” he added.

Remulla made the statement following the issue involving Manila’s SK members who shared on social media their supposed "capacity development" and "international benchmarking" activities in Thailand.

The SK members’ travel to Thailand drew flak from netizens who tagged the trip as a junket.

"Training and capacity-building abroad, I don't think that's necessary," Remulla said.

"What surprised me most was the way they openly flaunted their good time, posting about it repeatedly. It's part of a larger culture of trying to impress others, and that's ultimately what led to all of this,” he added.

According to Remulla, his department plans to issue a memorandum circular to clarify rules surrounding the use of public funds for travel. —VAL, GMA Integrated News