We in the Caucus of Development NGO Networks (CODE-NGO) mourn the loss of Sec. Jesse Robredo, and we extend our heartfelt condolences to his family, relatives, friends and colleagues. We confirm our admiration and long time support for Sec. Jesse, a person of integrity, vision and action, a dedicated
and competent public servant throughout his life, a patient and well-grounded mentor to mayors and other public servants nationwide and a gender-sensitive, empowering and transformative leader who served as a model for many of us.

We celebrate his many efforts to ensure transparent, participatory, accountable and effective governance.  When he was Naga City mayor, he trail blazed participatory governance processes and mechanisms such as the Naga City People’s Council (NCPC) and also engineered much improved delivery of city government services, including pioneering basic education reforms, strengthening the local school board and effectively using the Special Education Fund.  While he was Secretary of Interior and Local Government in the past two years, Sec. Jesse instituted the Full Disclosure Policy (FDP), Seal of Good Housekeeping (SGH), Performance Challenge Fund (PCF) and the Civil Society Participation Fund (CSPF).  Sec. Jesse also engaged in various efforts to respond to the needs of the urban poor and other marginalized sectors in our country. 

Furthermore, he devoted special attention to supporting the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) and its 130 LGUs in partnership with Mindanao CSOs, and inspired many Muslim leaders to aim for improved local governance.

We express again our gratitude to Sec. Jesse for his openness to and insistence on government partnership with civil society organizations, including CODE-NGO, its member networks and its 1,600 base organizations.

We pledge to keep his good governance ideals and initiatives alive in our own work and in our lives.

Maraming salamat, Sec. Jesse.

Caucus of Development NGO Networks
(CODE-NGO)
August 22, 2012

(Photo by  Manila Standard Today, August 22, 2012)