Labangan, Zamboanga del Sur – The 1st Infantry (TABAK) Division holds the 26th Multi-Sectoral Governance Council (MSGC) at the Division Conference Room here last Wednesday, June 30.

Atty. Florendo B. Opay, MSGC Chairman, and the other council members commended the Division for having been conferred with the Institutionalized Status under the Army Governance Pathway (AGP) last April 30, 2021. The Division was given a rating of 95.78% during the final revalida and, as a result, was awarded the Gold Trailblazer Award as a mark of excellence and distinction.

Atty. Opay also highlighted the perseverance of the Command in its journey toward genuine transformation. He mentioned that it took the Division more than five years and several commanders to finally advance from the Proficient to Institutionalize Status under the AGP. It was only under the present leadership that the Command has finally reached the summit of its transformation journey.

Col. Norberto L. Agbay, the Chief, Governance and Strategic Management Office (GSMO), presented the Division accomplishments for the 1st Quarter of CY 2021 and the major Milestones Toward the Army Governance Pathway.

The Office of the Assistant Chief of Staff for Education & Training (OG8), Operations (OG3), and Personnel (OG1) also presented their respective programs that will deliver the Breakthrough Goals for the Recertification of 1ID's Institutionalized Status two years from now.

Mr. Musa Sanguila, the chairman of the Good Governance Committee, urged the council to identify ways to insert and credit some of the programs being implemented in the field in the unit's scorecard.

Some MSGC members also introduced their plans and projects that would help the Division and its personnel.

First was the Plant Your Retirement project conceptualized by Mr. Rey F. Quisumbing, the Resource Generation Committee chairman. According to Mr. Quisumbing, the PYR project would be a good source of income for retired military personnel as coco products, specifically the buko pandan, have great market demand locally and abroad.

Engr. Rolando E. Soliva, MSGC vice-chairman, in his presentation on Ending Poverty in our Lifetime, stressed the Philippine Army's role in maintaining peace and order by alleviating the economic and financial conditions prevalent in Geographically Isolated and Disadvantaged Areas through the different government agencies in the RTF ELCAC.

The Command also handed out Certificates of Appreciation to the MSGC members to recognize their support and assistance during the transformation journey of the Division. Most of them were already MSGC members when it was organized back in 2016.

Maj. Gen. Generoso M. Ponio, the division commander, thanked the MSGC members for helping the Tabak Division attain the Institutionalized Status. "You are all part of the accomplishment. We could not have done these without your help. Our next step is to endeavor in bringing the transformation programs to the men in the field and letting them feel that the transformation is for real and not only done on paper," Gen. Ponio concluded.

(Source: Team Tabak, photo courtesy of 1st Infantry Tabak division)