Cebu PIOs Welcome ‘PCO Net’

Local and national government information officers in Cebu welcomed the establishment of the Provincial Communication Officers Network (PCO Net).

Sofronio Pintado Jr., public information officer of the Municipality of Tuburan and Cebu Association of City and Municipal Public Information Officers (CAOCAMPIO) president, said the move of the Presidential Communications Operations Office (PCOO) to establish a network that will go down to the barangay level is a welcome move by the organization.

He said CAOCAMPIO is already an established network where government information flows from the local government unit to the public and the media and receives feedback.

“Ang PCO Net makapahingusog pa gayud sa atong tinguha nga epektibo ug abling komunikasyon gikan sa gobyerno ngadto sa publiko, tungod kay gikan ang mga impormasyon sa buhatan sa Presidente. (The PCO Net will strengthen all the more our aim of effective and open communication from the government to the public since the information is coming directly from the Office of the President),” said Pintado.

Gay Visitacion, Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) information officer and vice president of the Association of Government Information Officers (AGIO), likewise shared the same sentiment, saying that communication is a transparency and accountability tool.

PCOO Assistant Secretary for Operations and Special Concerns, Anna Marie Rafael-Banaag, initiated an interaction with the information officers recently to urge them to continue being the bearers of news from the government.

“As information officers, you can influence and inspire the rest of the sectors in your community on responsible sharing of information and not fake news,” Banaag said.

All the members of CAOCAMPIO and AGIO automatically become members of the PCONet.

The AGIO and CAOCAMPIO networks were organized by the Philippine Information Agency (PIA).

PIA serves as the organizations’ secretariat and facilitates its monthly briefings and several trainings to capacitate them with the skills they need to become effective communicators of their respective local government units and offices. (fcc/PIA7-Cebu)