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HOW I CAN CONTRIBUTE TO AND ENSURE RESPONSIVE, ACCESSIBLE,

COURTEOUS AND EFFECTIVE PUBLIC SERVICE
J oventino T. Trinidad J r.
Faculty Member, ICT Department (ASIST Main Campus, Lagangilang, Abra)

As a child, I used to keep this question to myself, Why are there no lady
drivers? In public means of transportation, men always drive tricycles, jeepneys, taxis,
buses, trucks, and the like. I can see only a handful of women who drive bicycles and
single motorcycles. I wondered if women are forbidden to take control of the handlebar
or the steering wheel. Arent they good enough in driving as men do? Decades passed
and this was left unanswered until such time that I saw women featured in television
shows who are lucratively employed in stereotyped odd jobs for womendriving among
others.
Is driving exclusive for men and housekeeping exclusive for women? It was then
that I started to make inquiries on gender and gender roles. According to the Philippine
Civil Service Commission (2013), gender refers to the specific set of characteristics that
identifies the social behavior of women and men and the relationship between them.
Gender alludes not simply to women or men but to the relationship between them and
the way it is socially constructed.
I can say that at the time when I started my career as an instructor was also the
start and probably the height of gender sensitivity in ASIST. It was because the SUC
President then was a woman in the person of Dr. Imelda A. Buenafe. In the more than
century-old history of ASIST, Dr. Buenafe was the only woman who held the highest
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position in the College for more than a decade. Women administrators started to take
posts in the College and they were introduced to tasks which were usually entrusted to
men. This is in accordance to Philippine initiatives on gender-responsive governance as
stated by the Philippine Commission on Women (2013). The PCW claims that in the
Philippines, efforts to make governance gender responsive are promoted through
legislation, such as the Magna Carta of Women (MCW) which mandates non-
discriminatory and pro-gender equality and equity measures to enable womens
participation in the formulation, implementation, and evaluation of policies, plans, and
programs for national, regional, and local development.
According to Silva (2002), there are some legal instruments on gender and
development in the Philippines. The Philippine Constitution is one of the few in the world
that contains a gender equality provision. Article II, Section 14 stipulates: The state
recognizes the role of women in nation building and shall ensure the fundamental
quality before the law of women and men. There is also Republic Act 7192 (Women in
Development and Nation Building Act) and RA 6725 (An Act Strengthening the
Prohibition of Discrimination Against Women with Respect to Terms and Conditions of
Employment, Amending for the Purpose Article 135 of the Labor Code). Probably the
most significant push given to GAD efforts in government is the GAD Budget. The
annual General Appropriations Act (GAA) directs government agencies to formulate and
implement a GAD plan, the cost of which shall be at least 5% of the Agencys annual
budget.
This is in contrast to the assertion of the Asian Development Bank (2011) that in
Nepal, acute gender imbalances existed in the civil service: women accounted for only
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8.6% of all positions: 5.1% of officer level and 8.9% of support staff positions. There
were only three women at the highest level of the civil service, and 25 at level 1, of
which 20 were in social sectors or non-administrative positions. Female promotion rates
are low, with only one woman promoted to class 1 from 1997 to 2000, and similar trends
at other levels.
It is very privileged to become a civil servant in the Philippines. As a state college
instructor, my first step towards gender-responsive public service is to be informed of
the GAD advocacy of the CSC. Students are my clients. As such, equal attention should
be given to them regardless of their gender. While Conner (1999) concludes that men
tend to focus on a limited number of problems at a time and women tend to be intuitive
global thinkers, I shall not discriminate my students due to this established fact. During
recitations, board and seat works, hands-on activities, I shall give both genders a fair
opportunity to participate.
I will make sure that gender sensitivity is integrated in all my course values
orientation emphasizing discouragement of sexual harassment.
I shall make myself available during consultation hours and provide supplements
to classroom instruction towards accessible public service. In dealing with stakeholders
of the College such as the community and external linkages, I will exercise my utmost
courtesy and respect to customs and traditions.
When dealing with my colleagues, I shall give due credits to their opinions based
solely on merits and not on their gender. I shall not obey a superior due to his/her
gender impact on me but due to the consequences of his/her command.
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As a public servant with four-fold functions, I shall strive to instruct, conduct
researches, extend my expertise and produce materials and innovations relevant to my
field of specialization. I shall strive to work with my students, clients, colleagues and
superiors regardless of their gender, ethnicity, religion and political affiliation. It may
sound simple but when every civil servant in ASIST does it, we can make a difference. It
is high time that ASIST should not only be the center of quality education but also the
most gender-responsive educational institution in the province of Abra.


LITERATURE CITED

Book

Silva, M. (2002). Ways to gender responsive organizations: tools and guides for sowing
gender responsiveness in government organizations. National Commission on
the Role of Filipino Women & Canadian International Development Agency.

Online Materials

Conner, M. (1999). Clinical, medical & family psychology. Retrieved September 14,
2013, from
http://www.crisiscounseling.org/Relationships/DifferencesMenWomen.htm

Philippine Commission on Women. (2013). Philippine initiatives on gender-
responsive governance. Retrieved September 14, 2013, from
http://pcw.gov.ph/focus-areas/gender-responsive-governance/initiatives

Philippine Civil Service Commission. (2013). Gender and development. Retrieved
September 14, 2013, from http://excell.csc.gov.ph/GAD/GADhome.html

Asian Development Bank. (2011). Promoting gender responsive civil service in Nepal-
2011. Retrieved September 14, 2013, from
http://www.adb.org/themes/gender/gdcf-case-studies/nepal-promoting-gender-
responsive-civil-service



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