Baguio forms discipline brigades to enforce health protocols

THE CITY government has sworn in 604 members of its “Disiplina” (discipline) brigade from the 128 barangays who will ensure public compliance to the minimum health and safety protocols against the coronavirus.   

Mayor Benjamin Magalong, who is also the “Disiplina Muna” (discipline first) ambassador of the Cordillera Administrative Region (CAR), on Monday said the brigade is composed of at least five persons per barangay.

Their primary function at this time is to enforce the health and safety protocols to avoid getting sick of coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19). They are also tasked to recruit more people in the villages to help promote discipline and responsible behavior among the residents.

“Nagtayo tayo ng mga displina brigade sa barangays para i-promote ang disiplina dito sa pagpapatupad natin ng minimum health standards (we formed discipline brigades in the villages to promote discipline in the enforcement of the minimum health standards),” Magalong said.

He said that assuring the safety of persons from being infected require that they always remember two words — discipline and responsible behavior.

“Yung dalawa na 'yun ang dapat lagi natin tatandaan at ito yung pwedeng i-contribute ng ating mga kababayan (it is important that we always remember those two words because that is what our residents can contribute [in the Covid-fight]),” Magalong said.

He said the city was able to manage the Covid-19 situation with discipline and responsible behavior from the start of the lockdown. But still, there are those who refuse to cooperate and the brigade will perform the task of reminding them.

The “Disiplina Muna” is a national advocacy campaign of the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG). It aims promote the culture of discipline among Filipinos as a means of fostering people’s participation in nation-building and in the attainment of good governance.

The brigade members are also tasked to be role models and lead in the implementation of the programs, policies, projects and activities under the Disiplina Muna campaign’s seven pillars — road clearing, disaster preparedness and resilience, anti-smoking, ease of doing business, liquor ban, tourist spots cleanup, and barangay anti-drug abuse council.

Magalong said discipline needs to be practiced and has to be sustained.

“The only way to attain this is to transform it into a movement and movement means recruiting champions sa mga (in the) barangay who will in turn recruit more members and transform the advocacy levels in the barangay,” he said. (By Liza Agoot)