As part of the preparatory activities for the conduct of the Lupong Tagapamayapa Incentives Awards (LTIA), the Regional Awards Committee (RAC) held its first organizational meeting cum orientation last March 31, 2022, via Zoom teleconferencing.

Katarungang Pambarangay (KP) is a system for amicably settling disputes at the barangay level. This system is operationalized by the Lupong Tagapamayapa, headed by the Punong Barangay, which mediates, conciliates, and arbitrates disputes in a barangay to promote the speedy administration of justice.

The excellent performance exhibited by the Lupong Tagapamayapa is recognized annually through the LTIA. In the same spirit, more barangays are encouraged to keep improving processes and systems and introducing innovations without neglecting the basics of the KP Law.

The Regional Awards Committee is composed of DILG-NCR and representatives from the Judiciary, DOJ-NCR, LnB-NCR, NCRPO, and one (1) NGO. Its most recent meeting was convened to discuss the awards guidelines, validation schedule, and other strategies to improve the quality of the assessment of all LTIA entries for CY 2021.

Serving as the Chairperson of the Committee on behalf of DILG-NCR Regional Director Maria Lourdes L. Agustin, Assistant Regional Director Atty. Ana Lyn R. Baltazar-Cortez expressed her appreciation to everyone involved in the assessment for their continuous support and dedication to the improvement of the Lupong Tagapamayapa system in NCR.

The body reviewed the Awards Guidelines and the enhanced and approved LTIA Criteria, highlighting the technical notes on the definition of terms and means of verification. The legal bases of the Katarungang Pambarangay were also revisited.

For this year’s assessment, the Regional Awards Committee agreed to conduct the validation process online. The Table Assessment, Validation, Deliberation, Technical Assistance to Regional Winners, Completion of Documents, and the Submission to the National Awards Committee are scheduled for the month of April 2022.

To follow through, sustain the gains, and identify areas for improvement pinpointed in this assessment, the DILG-NCR, through the Center for the Advancement of Local Governance (CALG) and the Local Government Monitoring and Evaluation Division (LGMED), will undertake a series of relevant capacity development interventions for the Lupong Tagapamayapa in the coming months. #