By Daniel P. Tapaoan, Jr. 

To get acquainted with quality and ethical standards expected of all personnel of Mariano Marcos State University, 350 faculty members and staff hired from 2021 to present participated in a seminar on gender-sensitivity and value-based public service held May 9 at the Teatro Ilocandia. 

Dr. Fides Bitanga, OIC director of MMSU Human Resource Management Office (HRMO), discussed the core values of the university to align to the ideals of the employees. His lecture aimed to encourage devoted and selfless service among the participants.

Ethical public service was tackled by Atty. Josiah Patrick Bagayas, associate professor of the MMSU College of Law. He emphasized that civil servants should embody commitment to public service, professionalism, justness and sincerity, political neutrality, responsiveness to the public, nationalism and patriotism, commitment to democracy, and simple living. 

For her part, Ms. Nataliza Llapitan, focal person of MMSU Gender and Development Mainstreaming and Monitoring System, talked about basic GAD concepts. In her topic, she highlighted that employees should be accepted and respected regardless of their sexual orientation, gender identity and expression.

In addition, the new employees were oriented on various benefits and services provided by the Government Service Insurance System (GSIS), Pagtutulungan sa Kinabukasan: Ikaw, Bangko, Industriya at Gobyerno (Pag-IBIG) Fund, and the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth). These topics were delivered by Ms. Jeelady Isaac, manager of GSIS-Laoag Branch; Ms. Melissande Kathleen Apolonio, account specialist head of Pag-IBIG Fund-Laoag Branch; and Mr. Alvin Luciano Ubasa, social insurance officer and public relations officer designate of PhilHealth-Laoag Branch. 

Dr. Nathaniel Alibuyog, MMSU vice president for research and extension, lauded the HRMO for conducting the activity. He also encouraged the participants to imbibe the values they learned in the seminar so they can become more competent university servants.

The onboarding program is pursuant to Section 7, Rule VII of the Omnibus Rules Implementing Book V of Executive Order 292 and Other Pertinent Civil Service Laws. It also aligns with the ACHIEVE agenda of MMSU President Shirley C. Agrupis, particularly on Improved Revenue Generation and Resource Management, and Effective and Efficient Management. 

In a related activity, the MMSU-HRMO conducted the Employee Benefits Fair on May 10 at the Teatro Ilocandia to make government-mandated services and benefits more accessible to the university constituents. Representatives from the GSIS, Pag-IBIG, and PhilHealth are attending to the concerns of MMSU employees on registration, card enrollment, membership, benefit, and loan inquiries. (HLY/JVBT, StratCom)