Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) Secretary Benjamin ‘Benhur’ Abalos, Jr. hailed the 12 outstanding Lupong Tagapamayapa who were declared as winners in the Lupong Tagapamayapa Incentives Awards (LTIA) 2022 for their effective mediation in the amicable settlement of disputes in their respective communities.

“Congratulations sa lahat ng mga nagsipagwagi ngayong taon sa LTIA. Bilang pangunahing takbuhan ng mga mamamayan sa tuwing mayroong gulo o hindi pagkakaunawaan ang mga magkakabarangay, tunay na napakahalaga ng ginagampanang papel ng ating mga Lupon sa pagsusulong ng kaayusan at katarungan sa ating bansa,” he said.

At the same time, Abalos also lauded all lupons nationwide for the peaceful resolution of a total of 480,980 disputes in barangays in 2021 which could have been indiscriminately filed in regular courts and worsened case congestion in courts.

“This is a clear manifestation that our justice system at the barangay level is working and vibrant, and that our Lupons have been very effective in carrying their time-tested mandate of amicably settling disputes at the barangay level.”

Now on its 24th year of implementation, the LTIA is an annual awards program which grants economic and other incentives to outstanding Lupong Tagapamayapa which demonstrates exemplary performance and commendable contributions to attain the objectives of the Katarungang Pambarangay Program, an alternative conflict resolution structure at the grassroots level.

The national winners for each category are Barangay Marketview, Lucena City in Region IV-A (CALABARZON) for highly-urbanized cities (HUC); Barangay Upper Katungal, Tacurong City, Sultan Kudarat in Region XII for component cities (CC); Barangay Poblacion, Tupi, South Cotabato in Region XII for 1st to 3rd Class Municipalities; and Barangay Abiera, Sebaste, Antique in Region VI for the 4th to 6th Class Municipalities. Each national winner received P300,000 cash prize and a trophy.

On the other hand, the 1st runners-up are Barangay Balibago, Angeles City in Region III for HUCs; Barangay Sainz, City of Mati, Davao Oriental for CCs; Barangay Rizal, Bansalan, Davao del Sur in Region XI for 1st to 3rd Class Municipalities; and Barangay Kauran, Ampatuan, Maguindanao in BARMM for 4th to 6th Class Municipalities. They each received P250,000 cash prize and a plaque.

Rounding up the winners are the 2nd runners-up namely, Barangay Budla-an, Cebu City in Region VII for HUCs; Barangay Lawa-an, Roxas City, Capiz in Region VI for CCs category; Barangay Alangan, Limay, Bataan in Region III for 1st to 3rd Class Municipalities; and Barangay Monserrat, Magarao, Camarines Sur in Region V for 4th to 6th Class Municipalities. Each went home with P200,000 cash prize and a plaque.

“Nawa’y hindi matapos sa parangal na ito ang inyong dedikasyon at husay sa paglilingkod sa inyong mga barangay, at sa halip ay lalo pa ninyong pag-igihan ang trabaho upang maitaguyod ang katahimikan at kaayusan sa ating mga komunidad,” Abalos said.

The LTIA search covers all barangays in the country including barangays in the BARMM. The selection criteria of finalists are: efficiency in operations of the Lupong Tagapamayapa; effectiveness in securing the settlement of interpersonal dispute objective of the KP objective; creativity and resourcefulness of Lupong Tagapamayapa; area or facility for KP activities; and, financial or non-financial support.

All LTIA winners of this year were recognized during the recent national awarding ceremony in Pasay City.

Present during the ceremony were Chairman Chairperson of the Committee on Local Government, Senator Joseph Victor “JV” Ejercito, and members of the LTIA 2022 National Board of Judges and representatives from the DILG, National Police Commission (NAPOLCOM), Department of Justice (DOJ), and Supreme Court of the Philippines.

Original Article at: https://dilg.gov.ph/news/DILG-commends-12-outstanding-lupons-lauds-LGUs-for-430k-disputes-settled-in-barangays/NC-2022-1205