DAVAO CITY (PIA) -- The National Anti-Poverty Commission (NAPC) convened around 1,000 sectoral group leaders and representatives from 14 basic sectors in all regions in Mindanao during the Mindanao Regional Sectoral Assembly on September 20 to 21 held in Davao City.

The assembly provided the participants a platform for them to take part in the decision-making processes in governance and propose and discuss their priority sectoral agenda, accomplishments, and issues and concerns to eradicate poverty in the country.

Among the sectors include the artisanal fisherfolk, children, cooperatives, farmers and landless rural workers, formal labor and migrant workers, indigenous peoples and cultural communities, and non-governmental organizations.

The sectors came from the persons with disabilities, senior citizens, urban poor, victims of disasters and calamities, women, workers in the informal sector, and youth and students.

He emphasized that there is so much need to be done to address this issue, and the participation of the basic sectors is a step to achieve the end goal.

“Maraming dapat tugunan sa pangangailangan ng mahihirap at ito ay kailangan sila mismo isangkot natin sa pag-uusap tungkol sa ano ba ang sulusyon para sa kahirapan kasi sinasabi nga namin 'nothing about us without us' hindi pweding pag-usapan ninyo ang kahirapan ng hindi kausap ang mismong mga mahirap (There are many things that need to be addressed in the needs of the poor, and we need to involve them in the conversation about the solution for poverty, because we always say 'nothing about us without us.' You can't talk about poverty without talking to the poor people themselves),” he explained.

The 14 basic sectors are currently pushing for the institutionalization of their proper participation and representation in the government bureaucracy, Aleroza said.

He explained, “Kasi maraming programa ang ating gobyerno ina-adress yung kahirapan, pero kami naka-upo bilang recommendatory body lang… Kaya sabi namin, dapat ma-institutionalize ang aming paglahok sa mga mekanismo na binubuo ng ating pamahalaan (Because our government has various programs to address poverty, but we are only sitting as a recommendatory body... that's why we say that our participation should be institutionalized in the mechanisms that our government consists of).” (ASO/CLC, PIA-XI)