Zamboanga City - - It will be another feather on the cap for Zamboanga City, as Mayor Celso Lobregat today gets the coveted most outstanding mayor award in the implementation of social welfare and development programs in the country.

The awarding ceremony will be held 8:30 a.m today, August 27, at the Waterfront Hotel and Casino in Cebu City and will coincide with the 12th National Social Welfare and Development Forum.

Mayor Lobregat bested two other chief executives: Rodrigo Duterte of Davao City and Alfredo Lim of Manila during the search conducted by the Association of Local Social Welfare and Development Officers in the Philippines, Inc. (ALSWDOPI)

Lobregat is cited for his “excellent support to the implementation of social welfare and development programs in the locality”, according to ALSWDOPI President Ernesto Montecillo.

Since his assumption into office in 2004, Mayor Lobregat has steered Zamboanga City to progress and development.

With “unity and continuity” as his battle cry, the chief executive focused his first term on increasing revenue collection to enhance delivery of basic services and finance flagship projects. He prioritized programs on poverty alleviation, education, health, housing and resettlement, sports, environmental protection, peace and security and the promotion of cultural heritage.

For this year, Zamboanga City has prepared a record breaking budget not only in terms of amount but also in terms of expense classification. For the first time in the budget history of Zamboanga, the budget for social services is the highest at 37 percent up from last year’s 29 percent level, general services gets 31 percent while economic services gets 32 percent of the share.

With a balanced budget that dramatically increased from 2004 to 2007, the city government of Zamboanga has been able to strike an equitable balance between implementation of projects and the uninterrupted delivery of basic services.

Mayor Lobregat’s poverty reduction efforts have enabled indigent city residents to break out of poverty through income generating projects and other livelihood assistance they availed.

One of the most significant projects cited by the organizer in choosing Mayor Lobregat as the most outstanding mayor is the special undertaking covering the “badjaos” or sea gypsies in five barangays of the city, which is considered one of the tangible outputs of community organizing and empowerment endeavors.

The city government is also aggressively involved in the fight against human trafficking and all forms of abuse and against women and children. Zamboanga City holds the distinction of obtaining the first ever conviction under the Anti-trafficking in Persons Act of 2003 or Republic Act 9208 and helped save the Philippines from being downgraded to Tier 2 watch list ranking by the Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons of the US State Department.

The city’s social welfare and development projects are implemented through the CSWDO under Francisco Barredo. (Sheila Covarrubias)