QUEZON CITY (PIA) — The Report Card Survey (RCS) 2.0 being implemented on services provided by government offices will empower the public to rate the quality of these services and enable the agencies and local government units to further enhance their performance, according to the Anti-Red Tape Authority (ARTA).
During the PTV 4 Bagong Pilipinas Ngayon episode on October 2, 2024, ARTA Director General Ernesto Perez said, “Ito pong RCS 2.0 ay gumamit po tayo ng standardized version para ma-rate o ma-grade natin yung mga serbisyong ginagawa ng mga ahensya ng gobyerno. Ito po ay standardized system unlike before na kaniya-kaniya sila ng survey form.”
(In this RCS 2.0, we used a standardized version to rate or grade the services provided by government agencies. This is a standardized system, unlike before when each agency was using its own survey form.)
“This time, with the Anti-red Tape Authority as the agency tasked to implement this, we standardized this, and in-expand po natin ang coverage from last year na 50 pilot agencies ay ginawa natin na 860 government agencies kasama po dito yung local government units,” he added.
(This time, with the Anti-red Tape Authority as the agency tasked to implement this, we standardized this, and we expanded its coverage: from last year’s 50 pilot agencies, we now cover 860 government agencies, including local government units.)
The ARTA describes RCS 2.0 as a holistic tool that will measure the quality of public service delivery by government agencies in compliance with Republic Act 11032, or the Ease of Doing Business (EODB) Law. Through the RCS 2.0, feedback from the transacting public will be gathered and translated into actionable insights, with the end in view of continuous improvement of the public service across the country.
Its expanded coverage includes 300 national government agencies (NGAs), 200 local government units (LGUs), 150 government-owned and controlled corporations (GOCCs), 135 state universities and colleges (SUCs), 50 water districts, and 25 government hospitals—totaling 860 government offices nationwide, with 526 in Luzon, 150 in Visayas, and 184 in Mindanao.
“Malaki po ang nakikita nating potensyal dito, kapag ang ating mga stakeholders, yung mga nag-a-apply ng permits and licenses sa mga ahensya ng gobyerno at LGUs, pag alam nila na mayroon silang pagkakataon na i-grade o i-rate yung kind of service na nakuha nila sa ahensya, yung ating mga kasamahan sa gobyerno will be more responsive, will be more prepared para bigyan ng tamang serbisyo ang publiko,” Perez noted.
(We see a big potential in this: when our stakeholders, those applying for permits and licenses in government agencies and LGUs, have the opportunity to grade or rate the kind of service that they receive, the government personnel will be more responsive and will be more prepared to give the right service to the public.)
He admitted that ARTA has faced challenges in the implementation of the grading system.
“Ang una pong hamon na na-encounter… ay yung ilang mga ahensya at lokal na pamahalaan ay hindi pa handa na mag-submit ng kanilang mga updated data or report. Marami pa po ang hindi nakakaalam tungkol sa requirements ng citizen’s charter. In fact, of the 860 covered agencies, including the LGUs, 307 po dito ang kinakailangan talaga na magkaroon pa ng review ng kanilang citizen’s charter, 120 yung incomplete o wala pang citizen’s charter. Mayroong 65 na naka-garner ng excellent rating, 94 ay very satisfactory, at 88 yung satisfactory. Ibig sabihin nito, of the 860 covered agencies, above 50 percent really needs improvement,” Perez said.
(The first challenge that we faced… some agencies and LGUs are not yet ready to submit their updated data or report. Many do not yet fully know the requirements of the citizen’s charter. In fact, of the 860 covered agencies including the LGUs, 307 really need to review their citizen’s charter, 120 were incomplete or do not have their citizen’s charter. There were 65 that garnered an excellent rating, 94 were very satisfactory, and 88 were satisfactory. This means that of the 860 covered agencies, above 50 percent really needs improvement.)
“Gusto ko pong i-highlight yung positive. Kapag ang isang ahensya ay na-grade bilang excellent, ibig sabihin nito, siya ay fully compliant sa ease of doing business, with focus on the citizen’s charter. Malaking bagay na nagkaroon ng improvement lalo na yung mga ahensya na na-rate na excellent, na napatunayan nila na updated yung kanilang serbisyo at citizen’s charter,” Perez said.
(I want to highlight the positive part of this. When an agency has been graded as excellent, it means that it is fully compliant with the ease of doing business, with focus on the citizen’s charter. It is a major aspect that there has been an improvement, especially for those agencies that were rated as excellent, that they have proven that they have a set of updated services and citizen’s charter.)
“The agencies will be able to use the results of the RCS 2.0, this information and rating, to improve their services, their citizen’s charter, and their compliance with the electronic Business One-Stop Shop (eBOSS), among others,” Perez said.
The ARTA continues to widen the awareness of the public and all stakeholders on the RCS 2.0 campaign by intensifying its information drive and involving the private sector and various business chambers in the initiative.
Through these measures, the ARTA aims to make government offices commit, under the principles of transparency and accountability, to inform the public and all stakeholders about the services that they are mandated to provide, including the requirements on how to avail of these services. These measures likewise empower the public in their transactions with government offices, Secretary Perez emphasized. (PIA DMD)
