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A STUDY OF THE COMPLIANCE OF SELECTED BARANGAYS IN QUEZON CITY TO RELEVANT LAWS, RULES AND REGULATIONS ON ARCHIVES
AND RECORDS MANAGEMENT
VIVIAN SARAH C. JUANSON
SUBMITTED TO THESCHOOL OF LIBRARY AND INFORMATION STUDIES
UNIVERSITY OF THE PHILIPPINES DILIMANUNIVERSITY OF THE PHILIPPINES SYSTEM
IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTSFOR THE DEGREE OF
BACHELOR OF LIBRARY AND INFORMATION SCIENCE
APRIL 2012
This undergraduate thesis entitled “A Study of the Compliance of Selected
Barangays in Quezon City to Relevant Laws, Rules and Regulations on Archives and
Records Management”, prepared and submitted by Vivian Sarah C. Juanson in partial
fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Bachelor of Library and Information
Science, is hereby accepted.
IYRA S. BUENROSTRO
Adviser
Accepted as partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Bachelor of
Library and Information Science
JOHANN FREDERICK A. CABBAB
Dean
BIOGRAPHICAL DATA
Name : Vivian Sarah C. Juanson
Date of Birth : May 20, 1988
Place of Birth : Quezon City
Educational Attainment : Bachelor of Library and Information Science School of Library and Information Studies University of the Philippines Diliman June 2009 – Present
University of the Philippines Integrated School (High School) June 2001 – March 2005
Affiliations : Member UP Library and Information Science Students’ Association (UP LISSA) University of the Philippines Diliman
Work Experience : Intern UP Law Library University of the Philippines Diliman December 2010 – March 2011
Intern UP National Center for Transportation Studies University of the Philippines Diliman
April – May 2011
iii
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
I could have never done this paper if not for our Lord. He blessed me with good
people to help and guide me towards the right direction. I would like to thank the Lord
for this and for giving me the following people:
To my adviser, Ms. Iyra Buenrostro, thank you for being patient with me and for
all your advice and constructive comments.
To my Mommy, thank you for believing in me.
To my Daddy, thank you for accompanying me around Quezon City to gather
data for my study.
To my Lola for patiently helping me with my paper.
To my siblings, Adrian, Erika and Leila for inspiring me.
To the SLIS faculty and staff. To Ma’am Vyva, for helping me with the laws and
Republic Acts. To my plurkmate, Dean Igor, thank you for responding to my thesis-
related plurk posts with added pressure and insane emoticons. To Ate Gia for always
reminding me to clear all my deficiencies. To Ate Rhina for entertaining all my
questions.
To my friends, Jen, Zeng, Kikiam, PJ, Camille, Liyan, Mon and Tere. And to my
BFF DnD, thank you for always cheering me up and giving me hope when I’m down.
iv
DEDICATION
To my Lola, Mommy, Daddy
and to our Lord.
v
ABSTRACT
This study was conducted to find out the extent of compliance of the 14 out of 15
selected barangays in Quezon City to the relevant laws, rules and regulations on archives
and records management. The following specific objectives were: 1) to determine how
many barangays have separate archives and records offices, existing archival systems,
policies and practices on archives and records management; 2) to find out the practices of
the barangays regarding records storage and maintenance; 3) to know the policies and
practices of the barangays regarding the disposal of different barangay records; 4) to
determine how many barangays have Records Officers, their responsibilities, duties and
practices on archives and records management and to find out the responsibilities and
duties of the barangay Secretaries, Treasurers and Heads regarding archives and records
management and; 5) to come up with recommendations that will improve the existing
status of archives and records management of the barangays and their compliance with
the laws and regulations.
The respondents were the officers-in-charge of records management in barangays
Bahay Toro, Batasan Hills, Culiat, ESCOPA I, Kalusugan, Katipunan, Marilag,
Milagrosa, Obrero, Paraiso, Pinyahan, Sangandaan, Socorro and Teachers’ Village
West. Barangay St. Peter did not participate in the study. Distribution of survey
questionnaires and follow-up interviews were done to gather data.
The findings of the study revealed the following: 1) none of the barangays have
an existing archival system; 2) most of the barangays’ policies on archives and records
management are not formally written; 3) only three barangays have centralized receiving
vi
and releasing units; 4) only nine barangays have mini-archives; 5) none dispose public
and protected records; 6) only eight barangays have Records Officers and; 7) barangay
officials are more aware of the laws stated in the Local Government Code of the
Philippines or Republic Act No. 7160 compared to the National Archives of the
Philippines Act of 2007 or Republic Act No. 9470.
Based on these findings, the study concluded that there is a great and urgent need
for the barangays in Quezon City to upgrade and standardize their archives and records
management systems in accordance with the Republic Acts and DECS Orders to better
serve their constituencies. There is also a need to coordinate with the proper government
office, like the National Archives of the Philippines (NAP) to ensure that their archives
and records management systems are in accordance with the relevant laws and
regulations.
It is therefore recommended that the head of the barangays be required to attend
meetings informing them of the need and importance of establishing formal records
offices in their barangays; that the Executive Director (ED) of the NAP visit and inspect
barangay archives and records units and prepare and implement programs for seminars
and training sessions for Records Officers and Custodians of barangays and; that the
NAP authority may institute programs to inspire the barangay Records Officers to do
their best in complying with the Republic Acts and DECS Orders by giving them awards
and recognitions.
vii
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Chapter Page
I. INTRODUCTION …………………………………………………… 1
Background of the Study…………………………………………… 1Statement of the Problem ………………………………………...... 5Objectives of the Study…………………………………………….. 7Significance of the Study ………………………………………….. 8Scope and Limitations of the Study……………………………….. 9
II. REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE ………………………… 10
Foreign Studies…………………………………………………….. 10Local Studies……………………………………………………….. 16Conceptual Framework of the Study ……………………………… 22Definition of Terms ……………………………………………….. 24
III. METHODOLOGY………………………………………………….. 28Research Design……………………………………………………. 28Population and Sample…………………………………………….. 29Research Instrument/s …………………………………………..… 30Data Presentation and Analysis…………………………………… 31
IV. PRESENTATION, ANALYSIS AND INTERPRETATION OF DATA………………………………… 32
Barangays’ Provisions for Archives and Records Management………………………………………............... 32
Barangays’ Policies and Programs on Archives and Records Management………………………………………………... 33
Local Government Records ……………………………………….. 40Records Maintenance and Control………………………………… 42Disposal of Records……………………………………………….. 52Barangay Officials and Staff………………………………………. 57
V. SUMMARY, CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS ………………………………………… 72
Summary………………………………………................................ 72Restatement of the problem…………………………………...... 72Description of methodology…………………………….……… 74Principal findings of the study………………………….. ……… 74
viii
Conclusions..………………………………………………………. 76Recommendations………………………………………………..... 77
REFERENCES………………………………………..................... 80
APPENDICES
A – Cover Letter……………………………………………. 84 B – Survey Questionnaire…………………………………... 85
ix
LIST OF TABLES
Table Page
1. Barangays’ policies and programs on archives and records management……………………………………….. 34
2. The responsibilities of the Records Officers (ROs) in the barangays….. 59
3. Responsibilities and duties of Barangay Secretaries on archives and records management………………………...… 64
4. Responsibilities and duties of Barangay Treasurers on archives and records management…………………………… 66
5. Responsibilities and duties of Barangay Heads on archives and records management………………………….… 68
x
LIST OF FIGURES
Figure Page
1. Schematic diagram of the research study………………………………. 22
2. Barangay Pinyahan’s reception area…………………………………… 43
3. Barangay Paraiso’s reception area……………………………………… 43
4. Barangay Bahay Toro’s centralized receiving and releasing unit………. 43
5. Barangay Sangandaan’s centralized receiving and releasing unit………. 44
6. Barangay Socorro’s centralized receiving and releasing unit…………… 44
7. Barangay Culiat’s records area…………………………………………… 46
8. Barangay Pinyahan’s records area………………………………………… 47
9. Barangay Bahay Toro’s records area……………………………………… 47
10. Barangay Marilag’s records area…………………………………………. 48
11. Barangay Paraiso’s records area………………………………………… 48
12. Barangay Culiat’s mini-archives………………………………………… 50
13. Barangay ESCOPA I’s mini-archives……………………………………. 50
14. Barangay Socorro’s mini-archives………………………………………. 51
15. Barangay Teachers’ Village West’s mini-archives……………………… 51
xi
UNIVERSITY OF THE PHILIPPINES SYSTEMSCHOOL OF LIBRARY AND INFORMATION STUDIES
UNIVERSITY OF THE PHILIPPINES DILIMAN3/F GONZALEZ HALL 1101 QUEZON CITY, PHILIPPINES
Telephone: (632) 981-8500 loc. 2870, 2871Telefax: (632) 981-8500 loc. 2869
E-mail: [email protected]
THESIS/SPECIAL PROBLEM OPEN ACCESS PERMISSION
I, Vivian Sarah C. Juanson, author of the thesis/special problem entitled A Study of the Compliance of Selected Barangays in Quezon City to Relevant Laws, Rules and Regulations on Archives and Records Management , submitted to the UP School of Library and Information Studies as partial requirement for the degree of Bachelor of Library and Information Science, do hereby grant to the UP SLIS a “non-exclusive worldwide, royalty-free license to reproduce, publish and publicly distribute copies of said thesis/special problem in whatever form subject to the provisions of applicable laws, the provisions of [the Intellectual Property Rights Policy of the University of the Philippines] and any contractual obligations” (Art.7, Revised UP IPR Policy, June 3, 2011). Specifically, the following rights are hereby granted to the UP SLIS:
1. to upload a copy of this work in the UP SLIS theses database and in any other of its databases available on the public internet;
2. to publish the work in the UP SLIS Journal of Philippine Librarianship or any of its subsequent journal publications, both in print format and online; and
3. to give open access to above-mentioned work, thus allowing “fair use” as defined in the Intellectual Property Code of the Philippines, Provided, that, I be properly acknowledged and cited as the author of the work.
Vivian Sarah C. Juanson
NAME/SIGNATURE
LIMITED ACCESS AUTHORIZATION(For Potentially Patentable Thesis/Dissertation)
THESIS TITLE: ______________________________________________________________________AUTHOR(S):________________________________________________________________________ADVISER(S):________________________________________________________________________READER:___________________________________________________________________________DATE SUBMITTED:___________________________________________________________________DEGREE:___________________________________________________________________________
Permission is given for the following people to have access to this thesis:
Available to the general public YESAvailable only after consultation with author/thesis adviser NOAvailable only to those bound by confidentiality agreement NO
Student Thesis Adviser Dean
CHAPTER I
INTRODUCTION
Background of the Study
All government agencies have voluminous materials as a result of daily business
transactions between the public offices and the people in the community. These materials
come in different types and forms. Hence, there is the need for an orderly, systematic,
efficient and proper control and management in recording and archiving materials.
The Society of American Archivists’ (SAA) definition of archives management
from “A Glossary of Archival and Records Terminology” is:
Archives management or archives administration is the general oversight of a program to appraise, acquire, arrange and describe, preserve, authenticate, and provide access to permanently valuable records. It includes establishing the program's mission and goals, securing necessary resources to support those activities, and evaluating the program's performance. Archives management is distinguished from library, museum, and historical manuscripts traditions by the principles of provenance, original order, and collective control to preserve the materials’ authenticity, context, and intellectual character.
Records management is defined by the SAA as “the systematic and administrative
control of records throughout their life cycle to ensure efficiency and economy in their
creation, use, handling, control, maintenance, and disposition” (Society of American
Archivists, 2005). In the SAA website, Guercio 2001, is cited as saying that a records
management system is needed to give the creator the necessary records they need for the
continuation of their activities. A records management system is also needed for the
following; for the production and acquisition of reliable records for legal and technical
2
purposes, for the systematic organization of the creation of records, for the preservation
of authentic records and for fast and efficient retrieval of records (Society of American
Archivists, 2005)
It is important for any institution to have good archives and records management.
This allows the system to function properly, not only in terms of legality but also in
ensuring proper creation, use and permanent preservation of valuable records. It is
important for an institution to have an effective records management system to have a
systematic flow of its records activities. Records should also be properly appraised so that
their value would be identified as well as how they will be filed and organized. Active
records should be organized properly in a place where their retrieval would be fast and
efficient. Valueless records, on the other hand, should be put in a place where these could
be stored until the time of disposal or until they are needed again. Records with archival
value should be kept in a place where they could be preserved and maintained
permanently. With an effective and efficient archives and records management, the
institution’s activities will be supported with appropriate documentations and evidences.
However, poor archives and records management could result in untimely disposal of
important records that could disrupt the institution’s activities and credibility.
There are mandatory guidelines issued by the authorities to the government sector
for systematic and uniform archival and records management. Here in the Philippines, the
enactment of Rep. Act No. 9470 and Rep. Act No. 7160 and the coming out of DECS
Order No. 13-A and 13-B required the establishment of archives and records units in all
3
levels of government offices. Republic Act No. 9470 or the National Archives of the
Philippines Act of 2007 states in Article III, Section 13 that:
All government offices shall each establish their archives and records office/unit in coordination with the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) and the National Archives from their organic personnel within a year from the date of effectivity of this Act. The records officer or an archivist of a government office shall head the said archives and records office/unit. The Implementing Rules and Regulations (IRR) of Rep. Act No. 9470 specifiy the
rules and regulations that should be followed by the National Archives of the Philippines,
its staff, the Executive Director, the government offices and its officials regarding their
documents, archives, functions, roles, duties and responsibilities, offices, penalties, etc.
Republic Act No. 7160 or the Local Government Code of 1991, Section 374
states that:
Every local government unit shall provide for the establishment of archival system to ensure the safety and protection of all government property, public documents or records such as records of births, marriages, property inventory, land assessments, land ownership, tax payments, tax accounts, and business permits, and such other records or documents of public interest in the various departments and offices of the provincial, city, or municipal government concerned.
In relation to Section 374 of Rep. Act No. 7160, the Rep. Act No. 9470 and its
Implementing Rules and Regulations specify the rules and regulations that the local
government units should comply with, to make sure that their archival system, archives
and records programs and offices run systematically.
The barangay is the basic political unit that serves as the primary planning and
implementing unit of government policies (Rep. Act No. 7160, Sec. 384, 1991). The role
4
of the barangay as the basic political unit is specified in Section 384 of Rep. Act No.
7160:
The Role of the Barangay - As the basic political unit, the barangay serves as the primary planning and implementing unit of government policies, plans, programs, projects, and activities in the community, and as a forum wherein the collective views of the people may be expressed, crystallized and considered, and where disputes may be amicably settled.
All the Republic Acts and DECS Orders should first be implemented faithfully at
the barangay level. In the hierarchy of the units of government, the barangay is the most
basic unit. It is important, therefore, that proper and legal practices on archives and
records management be observed and implemented here in this level to ensure that all
transactions and records are systematically and appropriately handled. So, when the
records are requested by other offices and people needing them, the reliability and
credibility of records are assured.
In addition to the Republic Acts mandating guidelines for having a systematic and
uniform archives and records management in the different government units and offices,
the Department of Education, Culture and Sports (DECS) issued DECS Order No. 13-A
and 13-B. DECS Order No. 13-A, “prescribed uniform standards or guidelines to be
followed by government offices/ agencies in the disposal and distribution or destruction
of their valueless or unnecessary records” (DECS Order No. 13-A, 1988, p.8). DECS
Order No. 13-B prescribed rules and regulations governing the coordination of records
management and archives function.
5
With all these standards and legislative instruments, the researcher aims to find
out if and how these provisions are being carried out in the local government units,
especially in the barangays.
Statement of the Problem
The barangay, as the basic political unit serves as the primary planning and
implementing unit of government policies, plans, projects, programs of activities in the
community and as a forum where collective views of the people may be expressed and
considered and where disputes may be amicably settled. As a result of all these,
voluminous materials for information are generated and accumulated in the barangay.
Therefore, there is an urgent need for the observation and practice of proper and legal
archives and records management to ensure accuracy, authenticity and reliability of
information kept in the records. When the said records are called for in the higher level of
government units, the integrity of the records is carried over to support a transaction or
activity in which these records are needed.
With the stated policies and guidelines in Rep. Act No. 9470, IRR of Rep. Act
No. 9470, Rep. Act No. 7160 and DECS Order no. 13-A and 13-B, this study aims to
determine the extent of compliance and non-compliance of the current policies and
practices of the 15 barangays in Quezon City to the relevant laws, rules and regulations
on archives and records management.
6
Specifically, this study seeks to answer these problems:
1. What are the barangays’ provisions for archives and records management?
a. How many barangays have a separate Archives and Records Office/Unit?
b. Do the barangays have existing archival systems in their offices?
c. What are the barangays’ policies and programs on archives and records
management?
d. What are the barangays’ practices on archives and records management?
d.1. What are the policies and practices of the barangays regarding the
disposal of:
d.1.a. their protected records
d.1.b. their valueless records
d.1.c. their public records
e. How do the barangays store and maintain their records?
2. What are the current archives and records management practices that are
being done by the Staff in the barangays?
a. How many barangays have Records Officers (RO) in their offices?
a.1. What are the responsibilities and duties of the RO regarding archives
and records management?
a.2. What are the practices of the RO in handling barangay records?
b. Barangay Secretaries:
b.1. What are the responsibilities and duties of the Barangay Secretaries
regarding archives and records management?
7
c. Barangay Treasurers:
c.1. What are the responsibilities and duties of the Barangay Treasurers
regarding archives and records management?
d. Barangay Heads:
d.1. What are the responsibilities and duties of the Barangay Heads
regarding archives and records management?
3. What are the recommendations that could be suggested to further improve the
archives and records management practices of the barangays?
Objectives of the Study
The main objective of the study is to gain knowledge on the compliance and non-
compliance of barangays to the archives and records management-related laws and
orders.
Other objectives of the study are the following:
1. To determine how many barangays have separate Archives and Records
Offices, existing archival systems, policies and practices on archives and
records management.
2. To know the policies and practices of the barangays regarding the disposal
of different barangay records.
3. To find out the practices of the barangays regarding records storage and
maintenance.
8
4. To determine how many barangays have Records Officers, their
responsibilities, duties and practices on archives and records management
and to find out the responsibilities and duties of the Barangay Secretaries,
Treasurers and Heads regarding archives and records management.
5. To come up with recommendations that will further improve the existing
status of archives and records management of the barangays and their
compliance to the laws and regulations.
Significance of the Study
The researcher believes that this study will help the officials and personnel in-
charge of the records and archives understand the condition and importance of barangay
archives and records. This would therefore improve the existing practices of
recordkeeping in the basic units of government.
With the prompt and proper implementation of the output and recommendations,
the expected benefits and beneficiaries would be making barangay officials aware of the
laws and guidelines regarding archives and records management. This will enable the
barangay officials and staff assess and re-assess their policies and practices on archives
and records management for them to attain better management and service in the
barangay.
Other branches of the local government will also benefit from this study, as they
will get insights, as well as better practices on how to manage their respective local
government records based on the standards and laws, rules and regulations. Through this,
9
the common mistakes on recordkeeping done by these branches of local government
included in this study may be avoided to be replicated.
Scope and Limitations of the Study
The researcher studied and identified the policies, rules and regulations that are
relevant to the local government units, specifically in the barangay level. Out of 142
barangays, 15 were selected to be the subjects of this study. The respondents were the
heads of the barangays and the records officers/archivists or records custodians. The
focus of this study was to determine the compliance and non-compliance of barangays
with the archives and records management-related laws and guidelines. Only laws and
guidelines from Rep. Act No. 9470, Rep. Act No. 7160, DECS Order No. 13-A and 13-B
that apply to the barangay units, barangay officials and staff and to their archives and
records units/office, their practices and policies were considered in this study.
Laws/Guidelines referring to the duties/responsibilities of the National Archives of the
Philippines (NAP) and the Executive Director (ED) were not included in the study. The
study included 15 selected barangays in the four districts of Quezon City. Unfortunately,
during the course of data gathering, only 14 barangays participated.
10
CHAPTER II
REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE
This section presents the studies and other literature done in the past that are
related to this study and support the research objectives. The studies included are about
the management of public records, legislative frameworks of public records,
standardization of archives and records management, and some other relevant local
studies on archives and records management.
Foreign Studies on the Management of Public Records and Archives
In the article written by Edwin Bridges (1991) entitled, “State Record Laws and
the Preservation of an Archival Record”, he said that the management of public records is
becoming an increasing challenging task. Expanding government services have created
new classes and massive quantities records. New technologies for recording and
communicating information employ dizzying array of media and equipment. These
changes are overwhelming current laws and practices of the management of modern
government records.
In an electronic information environment, the systematic preservation of long
term records can be the result of purposeful decisions and deliberate efforts. People
designing and operating information systems have to decide what documentary records
are to be produced and take steps to ensure that the records are produced and preserved.
To ensure the preservation of a documentary record, state laws prescribing the
11
requirements and procedures for managing public records need to be examined and
updated (Bridges, 1991).
Standardizing Records and Archives Management
Archives management is the general overview of a program to acquire, appraise,
arrange, preserve, authenticate and give access to permanently valuable records (Society
of American Archivists, 2005). Archives management is also concerned with the
establishment of the program’s mission and goals, securing needed resources to support
its activities and evaluating the program’s performance (Society of American Archivists,
2005). Records management is defined by the SAA as “the systematic and administrative
control of records throughout their life cycle to ensure efficiency and economy in their
creation, use, handling, control, maintenance, and disposition” (Society of American
Archivists, 2005). In the SAA website, Guercio 2001 was cited:
The general purpose of a system of records management is that of providing the creator with the records necessary to support the efficient continuation of its activities, guaranteeing the recorded evidence, whether for internal purposes or for regulatory compliance. The specific objectives concern: the production and acquisition of reliable records for legal and technical purposes; the organization of the creation of records in an orderly and coherent manner linked to the functions performed; the transmission and preservation of authentic records; the speed and efficiency of retrieval in the context of the administrative activity carried out (p. 252).
It is a given fact that all agencies in different government units have voluminous
materials as a result of daily business transactions between the public offices and the
people in the community. These materials come in different types and forms. Hence,
12
there is the need for an orderly, systematic, efficient and proper control and management
in recording and archiving materials.
It is important for any institution to have a good archives and records
management. This allows the system to function properly, not only in meeting internal
and external legal requirements but also in ensuring that permanent records are properly
preserved. There are some mandatory guidelines issued by the authorities to the
government sector for systematic and uniform archival and records management
practices.
In the article written by Nikki Swartz (2008), entitled, “New Records Standards
for New Zealand”, she said that Archives New Zealand Minister Judith Tizard has
introduced two new recordkeeping standards for local and federal government agencies:
the Create and Maintain Recordkeeping Standard and the Electronic Recordkeeping
Metadata Standard. Tizard said that, information management is an important and
essential legacy. Well kept information brings the past into the future and ensures
government is transparent and accountable. The Create and Maintain Standard is now
mandatory for government organizations, which identifies the key requirements for
successful information management and establishes minimum requirements for
organization’s information to remain usable, reliable and available. The mandatory
Electronic Recordkeeping Metadata Standard encourages a systematic approach to
managing information in business systems where questions about who created the
records, for what purpose and whether records were altered can be answered.
13
The new standards are consistent with International Organization for
Standardization or ISO. These were developed in cooperation with the e-Government
Interoperability Framework and in consultation with government and local body
agencies. These compliment the 2007 Standard for the Storage of Records and Archives,
the first mandatory standard that set the requirements for physical records storage in
central and local government. These standards give power to the Public Records Act
2005 in New Zealand and help from the basis for independent audits of central
government recordkeeping in 2010 (Swartz, 2008).
From the series introduction of Geoffrey Yeo (2002) in the book entitled
Community Archives: the shaping of memory, he said that records are critical in
maintaining awareness of how the present is shaped by the past. Individuals and
organizations create records in line with their functions and activities. These records are
maintained and preserved to support business and accountability of the individuals and
organizations concerned. Everyone has records. However, the management of these
records is a professional discipline not everyone possesses. The term records and archives
are sometimes used as synonyms, but archives usually are records with long-term value.
It could also be used to refer to collections of historical materials which are important for
the communities’ awareness of its past and present.
In the same book, Richard J. Cox (2002) said that principles and practices in
records management and archives administration aim to disseminate information and add
to the body of professional knowledge and understanding. Cox (2002) also said that the
new emphasis by archivists on building and interacting with community is reflexive of
14
the kinds of opportunities represented by the many new social computing technologies
available to everyone. Cox (2002) cited Andrew Flinn when the latter said that it is clear
that involvement with both digital archives and with community campaigning groups
challenge the notion that the archivist can afford to be a passive recipient of the records.
This is because archivists should be active in pursuing community-based agendas. Their
skills should be enhanced to properly adapt with the societal changes instead of being
passive record keepers.
Guidelines, Laws, Rules and Regulations Related to Archives and Records
Management in the Philippines
Republic Act No. 9470 or the National Archives of the Philippines Act of 2007
that states in Article III, Section 13 that:
All government offices shall each establish their archives and records office/unit in coordination with the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) and the National Archives from their organic personnel within a year from the date of effectivity of this Act. The records officer or an archivist of a government office shall head the said archives and records office/unit.
Rep. Act No. 7160 or the Local Government Code of 1991, Section 374 states
that:
Every local government unit shall provide for the establishment of archival system to ensure the safety and protection of all government property, public documents or records such as records of births, marriages, property inventory, land assessments, land ownership, tax payments, tax accounts, and business permits, and such other records or documents of public interest in the various departments and offices of the provincial, city, or municipal government concerned.
15
In addition to the Republic Acts mandating guidelines for systematic and uniform
archival and records management, the Department of Education, Culture and Sports
(DECS) issued DECS Order No. 13-A and 13-B.
DECS Order No. 13-A -- Guidelines on the Decentralized Disposal of Valueless
Records in Government Agencies, have five (5) parts; (1) Coverage, (2) Definition of
Terms, (3) Records Disposal Procedure, (4) Penal Provisions and (5) Miscellaneous
Provisions. “This Order prescribed uniform standards or guidelines to be followed by
government office/agencies in the disposal or distribution or destruction of their valueless
or unnecessary records” (DECS Order No. 13-A, 1988, p. 8).
DECS Order No. 13-B -- Rules and Regulations Governing the Coordination of
Records Management and Archives Function have six (6) articles; (1) Coverage, (2)
Definition of Terms, (3) Records Management and Archives Administration, (4) General
Provisions, (5) Penal Provisions and (6) Miscellaneous Provisions. This Order prescribed
rules and regulations governing the coordination of records management and archives
function.
Knowing all these information, the researcher of this study aims to find out if and
how these provisions are being carried out in the local government units, especially in the
barangays. According to Rep. Act No. 7160, Section 384 –
The Role of the Barangay - As the basic political unit, the barangay serves as the primary planning and implementing unit of government policies, plans, programs, projects, and activities in the community, and as a forum wherein the collective views of the people may be expressed, crystallized and considered, and where disputes may be amicably settled.
16
The barangay is the basic political unit that serves as the primary planning and
implementing unit of government policies (Rep. Act No. 7160, 1991). All the Republic
Acts and DECS Orders should first be implemented faithfully in the barangay level. In
the hierarchy of the units of government, the barangay is the most basic unit. It is
important that proper archives and records management be observed here to ensure that
all transactions and records are properly handled. So when records or information are
called for in the next higher level, accuracy and authenticity of the materials are carried
over, hence they are reliable in the use for which they are needed.
Local Studies on Archives and Records Management of Public Records
Nofuente (1981) conducted a study entitled, “Records Management Practices of
International Organization: A Survey.” This is a descriptive survey of 13 international
organizations based in the Philippines, as regards their records administration. It surveyed
procedures and techniques on recordkeeping, described the processes used to plan the
creation of records, determine the design and utilization of a records classification
scheme and the filing system of the organizations included in the study.
The study found out that records were decentralized and the units holding the
records were under larger departments. Records management practices were not
standardized and the idea of establishing a records center/unit was not present either. The
staff in-charge of recordkeeping work were also untrained and concerns about records
management were often taken for granted by the top management.
17
The study recommended the following; there should be a centralized control and
management of all company records, training of record staff must be required, guidelines
governing policies and practices on record management should be issued and made
mandatory.
Rey (1997) conducted a research study entitled, “A Survey of Training Needs of
Archives Administration for Records Personnel and Archivists in Local Government
Units in Region I”. The key figure in the management of a standard record and archive
unit is the record manager or archivist. The need for trained record keepers had become
the focus of interest, hence the undertaking of this paper. The kind of educational
background and pre-service training was the target of the survey. The function of the
record workers, the kind and amount of support they get from their employers and their
preferred modes of continuing education were also surveyed. The research tools used
were two questionnaires (one for records personnel and one for human resource
management officers) and structured personal interview with the main respondents. The
Local Government Code of 1991, Sec. 374, Sec. 469 and Sec. 490, which identified the
person responsible for archive duties, was used as a standard and guide in the study. The
target respondents were from 129 municipal, city and provincial LGUs. It was found out
that 36% of the LGUs had no specific names for their record and archive units. The
records of many LGUs were decentralized and dispersed among the different
departments, where the one in-charge of the records is either the chief or the head of the
department. Records in the Office of the City Mayor were handled by a clerk, while there
is no one in-charge of the records in the Sanggunian Office.The record and archive
18
personnel in the LGUs surveyed had varied pre-service baccalaureate education. They
have no formal training and education regarding archives and records management.
Buenrostro (2005) did a study entitled, “Reference Service and Provisions for
Access of Selected Archives of Government Institutions in Metro Manila,” to identify the
kind of reference service and provisions for access by selected government archives in
Metro Manila, the service procedures followed by the archives personnel and to
determine the policies on archival access to users. The subjects of the study were the
Presidential Archives of the Office of the President, Legislative Records and Archives
Office of the Senate of the Philippines, Cultural Center of the Philippines Library and
Archives, Legislative Archives Service of the House of Representatives and Records
Management and Archives Office. Survey questionnaires, interviews and document
analysis were employed to gather data.
The findings of the study revealed that all five government archives were
established to become repositories of records of their parent institutions and to make
them available to the public. The Philippine Constitution and the Presidential Executive
Order No. 89 govern the access policies of the five archives. The archives differ in their
policies and procedures because of the nature of collections each of the institutions, users
and institutional mission.
The study recommended that in the management of reference service, the mission
of archives must be clearly stated, the groups of people to be served be identified, the
staff tasks be clearly defined, locating and finding aids be accessible to users, summary
19
reports must include new lists of acquisitions, as well as the services and programs
rendered by the institution.
Silagpo (2008) conducted a research entitled, “A Study on the Existing Records
Management Practices of Sangguniang Panlungsod ng San Jose Del Monte”, to know the
existing records management practices of the Sanggunian with the goal of upgrading and
standardizing the records management practices of this office.
The respondents in the study were the secretary and staff of the institution. The
data gathered were compared with the best practices according to ISO 15489-1 and ISO
15489-2. Findings of the study revealed that Sanggunian just file/pile records in a rusty
steel cabinet placed outside of the secretary’s office. The filing system used differs from
one employee to another. Because of this, records were usually misplaced or lost. The
recommendations of the study included strict observation of the ISO 15489-1 and ISO
15489-2; there should also be a sufficient budget appropriation for the maintenance of
records; records management personnel should undergo trainings on different archival
and records management functions based on ISO 15489-1 and ISO 15489-2.
Garcia (2009) made a case study entitled, “Establishing Government Municipal
Archives Case Studies of Local Government Archives’ Practices.” This study focused on
six local government units from different regions that were able to establish their own
archives. The researcher made use of qualitative research method and used interview
schedule as her main research instrument. The study aimed to determine the
establishment of local government archives pursuant to the Local Government Code of
20
1991, Sec. 374, to find out archival practices of these government units as well as their
mandates, policies, archives services and administrative support they received.
The study revealed that there were two successfully established local government
archives in the NCR, the Archives Section of the City Secretary’s Office of Q.C. and
Brgy. Capri Archives, Novaliches, Q.C. In Region I, the Archives Division of the
General Service Office in Pangasinan and the City Archives and Archives of the
Secretary to the Sangguniang Panlungsod of the City of San Fernando, La Union. In
Region X, the Lugait Library Archives, Museum and Information Center in Misamis
Oriental was also successfully established.
All six local government units’ archives offices were established pursuant to the
Local Government Code of 1991, Sec. 374. The success in the establishment of the local
government archives is attributed to the management and administrative support of the
local government and the initiative, perseverance and teamwork of the people concerned
in the establishment of the archives. Thus, the local government archives cited in the
study can serve as models for other government units in the country that are planning to
have their own archives as well.
Golfo (2010) conducted a research study entitled, “Towards a Standard Archive
and Record Management System for Government Corporation and Financial Institutions
in Metro Manila.” The importance of proper and standardized archive and records
management is gaining recognition among the authorities in the field. The agencies were
evaluated based on the combined requirements set forth by the Records Management and
Archives Office (RMAO) or the National Archive Act pertaining to the Records
21
Management processes and control aspects, Rep. Act No. 9470 and RMAO, DECS Order
13-A (Guidelines on the Decentralized Disposal of Valueless Records in Government
Agencies) and Section 4.2.1 and of ISO 15489-2 (Guidelines).
Findings showed that although 100% compliance to standards and best practices
was not achieved, efforts to put order in handling of records are being undertaken. The
lack of formal training and sufficient knowledge in handling archives is one of the major
reasons why basic requirements in archive administration were not implemented and
practiced in the GOCCs and GIFs. There was also no monitoring mechanism to check on
the agency’s compliance to the law and standards.
The said study recommended that agencies should set up a separate records unit
with the necessary level in the organizational structure based on the volume and
importance of records in the unit. Formal training of personnel was also recommended to
meet the need for required knowledge and skills in maintaining and controlling the
archives and records unit. It was also deemed necessary that RMAO, now known as the
NAP come up with a standard for archives and records management designed for GOCCs
and GIFs.
The above given literatures are closely related to this researcher’s study that is
being undertaken. The stated need for properly trained record and archive management
personnel is stressed in almost all of the mentioned studies. Implementation of
appropriate policies and practices in the LGUs on records and archives management is
the responsibility of the records personnel, heads of the departments and the LGUs
22
themselves, who are the key figures in establishing and maintaining fully functional and
effective archives and records centers.
Conceptual Framework of the Study
Republic Act No 9470
IRR of Rep. Act No. 9470
Republic Act No. 7160
DECS Order No. 13-A
1. Barangay’s Provisions for archives and records management: a. Archives and Records
Office/Unitb. Archival Systemc. Policies and Programs d. Practices
d.1. Disposal d.1.a. of protected records
d.1.b. of valueless records d.1.c. of public records
e. Storage
2. Staff:a. Records Officer
a.1. responsibilities/duties regarding archives and records
managementa.2. practices on handling
recordsb. Brgy. Secretary
a.1. responsibilities/duties regarding archives and records
managementc. Brgy. Treasurer
a.1. responsibilities/duties regarding archives and records
managementd. Brgy. Head
a.1. responsibilities/duties regarding archives and records
management
DECS Order No. 13-B
23
Figure 1. Schematic diagram of the research study
The study intends to find out the provisions and segments of the implementing
rules and regulations of the Rep. Act No. 9470, Rep. Act No. 7160, DECS Order No. 13-
A and 13-B that are being observed in the 15 barangays in Quezon City. To meet this
general objective, the study looks into the archives and records management issues of the
barangays, the archives and records management programs, policies and practices
including the disposal and storage of barangay records.
Aside from the actual provisions of the barangays for the management of archives
and records, the responsibilities and the actual recordkeeping practices of the staff, such
as Records Officers, Brgy. Secretaries, Brgy. Treasurers and Brgy. Heads are also
analyzed based on the laws, rules and regulations on archives and records management.
Thus, after determining and analyzing the extent of compliance of the barangays
and their staff to the provisions and implementing rules on archives and records
management, recommendations would be made to further improve the existing practices
and system on archives and records management in the different barangays.
24
Definition of Terms
For the purpose of this study, the following definitions of terms were used:
Agency head (may refer to Barangay Head) - refers to the person responsible for the
performance of a government office and/or the person responsible for, the
performance of the LGU, such as the chief executive elected under the Local
Government Code of 1991 (Rep. Act No. 9470, 2007).
Archives - shall refer to:
(1) Public records, papers, periodicals, books or other items, articles or
materials, whether in the form of electronic, audio-visual or print, which by their
nature and characteristics have enduring value, that have been selected for
permanent preservation;
(2) The place (building/room/storage area) where archival materials are kept
and preserved; and
(3) An organization (or part of an organization) whose main function is to
select, collect and preserve archival records and make such records available for
public use (Rep. Act No. 9470, 2007).
Archives management/ Archives administration - The general oversight of a program to
appraise, acquire, arrange and describe, preserve, authenticate, and provide access
to permanently valuable records (Society of American Archivists, 2005).
Barangay (Brgy.) - basic political unit in the Philippines.
25
Barangay Head (may refer to the agency head) - head of the barangay office, commonly
known as the Barangay Captain.
DECS - Department of Education, Culture and Sports
Disposal - refers to the act of selling, burning or any other way of discarding valueless
records in accordance with the provisions of this Act (Rep. Act No. 9470, 2007).
Disposition - refers to the systematic sorting out of records in the office storage whereby
those classified as valuable records are permanently preserved and those which
are classified as valueless are disposed of (Rep. Act No. 9470, 2007).
Executive Director (ED) - refers to the head of the National Archives of the Philippines
(Rep. Act No. 9470, 2007).
GFI(s) - Government Financial Institutions
GOCC(s) - Government-Owned and Controlled Corporations
IRR - Implementing Rules and Regulations
ISO - International Organization for Standardization
Local government records - refers to records in any form, in whole or in part, created or
received, whether before or after the effectivity of this Act, by an LGU in the
conduct of its affairs (Rep. Act No. 9470, 2007).
Local government archives - refers to local government records that have been collected
by the controlling local government unit that served as historical evidences in the
performance of its duties (Rep. Act No. 9470, 2007).
LGU(s) - Local Government Units
National Archives - National Archives of the Philippines (NAP)
26
Protected records - refers to local government records containing data that are important
from economic, social, political, legal, national security, scientific, cultural,
technological or other aspects, which are indispensable for the research of
historical past, for becoming acquainted with and understanding it, and/or for the
continuous fulfillment of public duties and the realization of citizens' rights,
which are not or only partially available from other sources (Rep. Act No. 9470,
2007).
Public records - refers to record or classes of records, in any form, in whole or in part,
created or received, whether before or after the effectivity of this Act, by a
government agency in the conduct of its affairs, and have been retained by that
government agency or its successors as evidence or because of the information
contained therein (Rep. Act No. 9470, 2007).
Records - refers to information, whether in its original form or otherwise, including
documents, signatures, seals, texts, images, sounds, speeches, or data compiled,
recorded, or stored, as the case may be:
(1) In written form on any material;
(2) On film, negative, tape or other medium so as to be capable of being
reproduced; or
(3) By means of any recording device or process, computer or other electronic
device or process (Rep. Act No. 9470, 2007).
Records Center - refers to an intermediate repository in which noncurrent records of
various government offices are stored until they can be destroyed or transferred to
27
the National Archives (Rep. Act No. 9470, 2007).
Records Custodian - any agency employee with responsibilities over a particular set of
records. A records custodian must keep the Records Officer informed of any
issues regarding the records in their custody. May be designated temporarily by
the head of the agency or appointing body, in the absence of a qualified Records
Officer (Rep. Act No. 9470 IRR, 2008).
Records Office/Unit - refers to an organizational unit responsible for planning,
developing, prescribing, disseminating and enforcing policies, rules and
regulations and coordinating agency-wide records management program (Rep.
Act No. 9470 IRR, 2008).
Records Officer - person-in-charge of the records office/unit in the Barangay.
Records Management (RM) - The systematic and administrative control of records
throughout their life cycle to ensure efficiency and economy in their creation, use,
handling, control, maintenance, and disposition (Society of American Archivists,
2005).
RMAO - Records Management and Archives Office
Valueless records - Include all record materials that reached their prescribed retention
periods and usefulness to the agency or the government ads a whole (DECS Order No.
13-A, 1988)
28
CHAPTER III
METHODOLOGY
Research Design
This paper used descriptive research method. Questionnaires were used to gather
data to identify the extent of compliance of 15 randomly-selected barangays in Quezon
City to the existing laws, guidelines and rules and regulations on archives and records
management.
The first part of this study involved the identification of existing laws, guidelines
and rules and regulations on archives and records management in local government units
such as the barangays. Provisions and sections of these laws that are applicable to
barangays were used, especially the ones stated in the Republic Act No. 9470 and Rep.
Act No. 7160 and DECS Order No. 13-A and 13-B as the basis for evaluation. In the
second part of the study, data from the 15 randomly selected barangays in Quezon City
were gathered through a survey questionnaire. The respondents (Barangay Secretaries,
Treasurer, Records Officer, Records Custodians, Archivists and Barangay Heads) were
respectfully requested to answer the questionnaire. The Records Officer was likewise
requested to make sure that the questionnaire was accomplished properly by the
designated respondents. A follow-up interview was also done as the researcher gathered
the data needed. The third part involved the assessment of the extent of compliance and
non-compliance of each barangay to the laws and guidelines identified in the first part of
29
this study. The data gathered were interpreted, analyzed and presented through some
tables in the following chapter. Lastly, recommendations for the necessary improvement
of the system of archives and records management of the 15 barangays were given.
Population and Sample
At present, there are 142 barangays (Brgy.) in Quezon City, which are divided
into four districts. There are 37 barangays in District I, 30 in District II, 37 in District III
and 38 in District IV. Due to the limited time, budget and manpower of the researcher,
only 15 barangays were included in this study, four each from Districts I, III and IV, and
three from District II.
This study used stratified random sampling. The barangays in Quezon City were
divided into four districts and a total of 15 barangays were randomly selected from these.
However, only 14 barangays participated in the study. Barangay St. Peter did not
participate because the Barangay Secretary was on leave.
The selected barangays per district are the following:
DISTRICT I:
1. Brgy. Bahay Toro
2. Brgy. Katipunan
3. Brgy. Paraiso
4. Brgy. St. Peter
DISTRICT II:
1. Brgy. Culiat
30
2. Brgy. Sangandaan
3. Brgy. Batasan Hills
DISTRICT III:
1. Brgy. ESCOPA I
2. Brgy. Marilag
3. Brgy. Milagrosa
4. Brgy. Socorro
DISTRICT IV:
1. Brgy. Kalusugan
2. Brgy. Obrero
3. Brgy. Pinyahan
4. Brgy. Teachers’ Village West
In each barangay, the respondents were the Barangay Head/Captain, Secretary,
Treasurer and the Records Officer, Records Custodian or the Archivist.
Research Instrument/s
The main research instrument used in this study to gather data is a survey
questionnaire. Questionnaires were distributed to the selected barangays and given to the
officers-in-charge of the Records Offices of each barangay. The survey questionnaire
included questions on the barangay’s provisions for archives and records management,
their archives office/unit, archival system, policies and programs, disposal practices,
31
storage and the responsibilities and duties of their staff on archives and records
management. The respondents (Barangay Secretaries, Treasurer, Records Officer,
Archivists and Barangay Heads) were requested to answer the questionnaire. A week was
given to each barangay to accomplish the questionnaire. Follow-up interviews were done
upon collecting the questionnaires from the respondents.
Data Presentation and Analysis
The number of respondents was very small, so the actual numbers were used in
the analysis and presentation of data collected. Tables were also used in the presentation
of data in Chapter IV.
32
CHAPTER IV
PRESENTATION, ANALYSIS AND INTERPRETATION OF DATA
This chapter presents the presentation, analysis and interpretation of the data
gathered. Out of 15 barangays that were initially chosen for this study, only 14
participated. Despite the persistent follow-up done by the researcher, no response was
received from Barangay. St. Peter because the Barangay Secretary was on leave.
Barangays’ Provisions for Archives and Records Management
According to the IRR of Rep. Act No. 9470, Article 32:
Upon the effectivity of these Rules, every LGU should establish an archival system to ensure the safety and protection of all public documents and records such as records of births, marriages, deaths and such other documents and records of public interest in the various offices and departments in the province, city, or municipality, and the barangay concerned.
Based on the responses made by the barangays, six of them have existing archival
system in their offices. These are Brgy. Sangandaan, Bahay Toro, Katipunan, Paraiso,
Culiat and Kalusugan. However, they failed to show their written policies and programs
as forms of documentation and evidence of the existence of the said archival systems.
The absence of an archival system in the barangay level makes the records vulnerable and
less protected. Important records might be lost or damaged due to improper handling and
poor security. None compliance to IRR of Rep. Act No. 9470 would entail negative
33
effects to the barangays, not only in the state of their records, but also in their transactions
and overall administration.
None of these barangays has ever been inspected by the Executive Director (ED)
of the National Archives of the Philippines (NAP). According to the IRR of Rep. Act No.
9470, Rule 48, Article 79:
The ED may, after giving reasonable notice of fifteen (15) working days to a government office inspect the system and procedure of maintaining, including the storage or condition, of such public records that are under the possession, custody or control of that office: Provided, however, that the ED is prohibited from exercising such power to inspect in cases where public records:(a) carry security classifications; and(b) are restricted by other legislation without the consent of the head of the controlling government office.
Since the ED has never inspected the barangay records, the barangays, in turn,
have no idea that the ED can assess their recordkeeping and archival practices. They have
not asked assistance from the NAP on their barangay records and archives.
Barangays’ Policies and Programs on Archives and Records Management
According to DECS Order No. 13-A, Article III, Rule 3.1:
Each agency shall have a Records Disposition Schedule, to be accomplished in the prescribed form (Form 2) covering its substantive records and those records not included in the General Records Schedules to serve as its guide in the disposition of records subject to approval of the Records Management and Archives Office [now known as the National Archives of the Philippines or NAP].
Table 1 shows the degree of implementation of policies and programs on archives
and records management by the chosen 14 barangays in Quezon City as required by the
34
related laws, rules and regulations, specifically by the DECS Order stated above.
Table 1
Barangays’ policies and programs on archives and records management
Barangays Records
Disposition
Schedule
File
Breaks
Set of
standards
and
criteria
Records
Mgt.
Operations
Manual
File
Classification
Guide/Scheme
Retention
Code
Records
Mgt.
Program
Records Mgt.
Improvement
Committee
Production
Control
Program
Marilag
Socorro X
Bahay Toro X X X X
Sangandaan X
Batasan
Hills
Paraiso X
ESCOPA I
Milagrosa
Pinyahan X
Katipunan X X
Teachers’
Village
West
Obrero
Kalusugan X X X
Culiat
Total 0 1 5 0 5 2 0 0 0
35
Records Management Procedures and Controls
Records Disposition Schedule
Records Disposition Schedule (RDS) serves as an agency’s guide in the
disposition of their records. If there is no RDS in an institution, disposal of their records
will be unsystematic, untimely and illegal. It must be noted that all the documents
produced in the barangays, which are local government units, are public properties.
As shown in Table 1, none of the barangays has a Records Disposition Schedule.
This shows that all of the barangays do not have systematic and organized schedules for
records disposal. This could lead to loss of important and permanent records. This also
shows the non-compliance of most barangays to DECS Order No. 13-A, Article III, Rule
3.1 cited before Table 1.
File Breaks
File breaks are “the termination of filing activity for a particular file at a pre-
determined time or after the lapse of a specific event and beginning of a new file period”
(DECS Order No. 13-A, 1988, p.8). It is important for an institution to have specific file
breaks so that their filing activities have a specific duration, schedule or time. This is
done to avoid confusion in filing their records and to make their retrieval of records
easier for future use.
36
According to Brgy. Bahay Toro, they have a File Break. It is usually done when
the new administration takes over. There is no specific file break followed when
managing records. This shows that the barangays do not usually have a specific and
written policy regarding their filing periods, making their filing activities unsystematic
and irregular. Other barangays are filing their records daily. Usually after the transactions
are done, they simply put these in the filing cabinets. Their files are organized by year
and then by month. However, they do not have a specific file break. The barangays
usually file their records as long as there is available space in the filing cabinets.
This shows the non-compliance of most of the barangays in DECS Order No. 13-
A, Rule 12, which states:
12.1 Each agency shall determine when to have its file breaks. File breaks are generally set during the slack periods of filing and servicing. A file break may be set at the end of the fiscal year or calendar year.12.2 Records shall be disposed of periodically, usually once a year, soon after a file break.
If there are no file breaks, records will continue to pile-up, making the
organization, search and retrieval of records more difficult.
Standards and Criteria
For an agency to have an organized and systematic records management, it should
have a set of standards and criteria for the efficient use of filing equipment and floor
space for the records. This would result to better management and handling of records.
In DECS Order No. 13-B, Article III, Rule 2.5, it is stated that, “each agency shall
set standards and criteria for the maximum utilization of filing equipment and floor space
37
for maintaining and servicing files” (p.15). Five barangays, Brgys. Bahay Toro,
Sangandaan, Paraiso, Katipunan and Kalusugan have set of standards and criteria for the
maximum utilization of filing equipment and floor space for maintaining and servicing
files. However, they were unable to show the written set of standards for this. Instead,
their standards are based on the agreement among the personnel and head. Lack of
standards and criteria would obviously lead to inefficient utilization of resources.
Records Management Operations Manual
According to DECS Order No. 13-B, Rule 2.6:
Each agency shall develop and maintain a records management operations manual which shall contain the functions, organizational chart of the records unit, policies and standard operating procedures on records activities.
A records management operations manual is very important for an institution to
have an effective and systematic records management. It contains all the written policies,
charts and standard procedures on records activities of their institution.
Agencies that fail to structure a records management operations manual will
surely have problems regarding their filing and retrieving systems. Unfortunately, none
of the barangays has this manual in their offices. This just shows that in the barangay
level, this order is not being properly implemented. This might lead to improper,
unsystematic and unorganized handling of their records.
File Classification Guide/Scheme
38
According to DECS Order No. 13-B, Rule 5.2, “each agency shall develop a File
Classification Guide or Scheme based on its organization and functions for a uniform
filing system” (p.16).
Five barangays, Brgys. Socorro, Bahay Toro, Pinyahan, Katipunan and
Kalusugan claim they have File Classification Guide/Scheme in their offices. However,
the file classification schemes they are using are not documented and are purely based on
practical approaches. There might be a simple or verbal undocumented agreement among
the employees to use the existing file classification scheme. This shows that most of their
policies on archives and records management are not formally written.
Written policies on archives and records management are very important. The
staff may have different understanding among themselves or interpretations of their
verbal agreements as to how they implement their file classification guide. This may lead
to different filing systems that can cause inefficient filing of records, making it difficult
for users to locate the records they need.
Retention Code
Retention code is “a numeric symbol by which a file material may be retained or
disposed of” (DECS Order No. 13-B, 1988, p.14). Assigning retention codes on records
facilitates faster, easier and systematic organization, storage and disposal of records.
None of the barangays has a retention code. This shows the non-compliance of all
the barangays to DECS Order No. 13-B, Rule 5.3, which states that, “Retention Code
39
shall be affected by each agency based on the General Records Schedule and the
agency’s Records Disposition Schedule before the records are filled” (p.16).
Records Management Programs
Establishment of a Records Management Program
Managing records in an institution requires a lot of knowledge and experience.
Changes are inevitable, so records personnel, records management policies and practices
must also adapt to these changes. According to DECS Order No. 13-B, Rule 2.1:
All departments, bureaus and offices of the executive, legislative and judiciary branches, including constitutional offices and government-owned and controlled corporations, shall establish and maintain an active continuing program for the effective management of their records.
None of the barangays in this study has a Records Management Program. This
implies that all of the barangays do not have a continuing program for the effective
management of their records. Through the years, the barangays are having difficulty in
improving their archives and records management practices.
Records Management Improvement Committee (RMIC)
It is important for an agency to have a Records Management Improvement
Committee. This committee is responsible for assessing and improving current programs,
policies and practices on records management in their offices. According to DECS Order
No. 13-B, Rule 2.4:
40
Each agency shall create a Records Management Improvement Committee as an advisory body on the improvement of all phases of records management, the Chairman and members of which shall be designated by the head of the Agency.
Unfortunately, none of the barangays has a Records Management
Improvement Committee. This shows that all of the barangays who participated in
the study failed to comply with DECS Order No. 13-B, Rule 2.4 as cited above. It
shows that all the selected barangays do not have a formal committee which is
responsible for improving their records management practices. The barangays do
not have budget for the creation of a Records Management Improvement
Committee.
Production Control Program
According to DECS Order No. 13-B, Rule 4.1.1:
Each agency shall have an integrated program in the creation of necessary records and copies thereof, including reports, forms, issuances to the absolute minimum in the most economical way consistent with efficient and its responsibility.
None of these barangays has a Production Control Program. This may lead to
problems in their records activities in the long run. The problems may arise when several
records officers or staff will be doing their jobs in accordance with their individual
understanding on the production, filing and classification of records in their offices.
Different staff members would be doing their jobs based on their own convenience.
Local Government Records
41
Protected Records
Government records are important because these are used to properly govern
people in a community as well as to make the people aware of their rights and duties.
Thus, local government units, such as barangays, should protect their records. According
to the IRR of Rep. Act No. 9470, Rule 41, Article 66, “The ED may, by notice in the
Official Gazette made after consultation with any local government concerned, declare
that a local government record is a protected record for purposes of this Rule” (p. 1472).
All 14 barangays consider local government records as protected records. It is
good to know that all of the barangays are concerned and compliant with the law stated
above. This shows that most of the barangay officers know the importance of their
records. This might be an assurance that records are safe and are being protected in their
custody. The barangays consider all of the records that they have as protected records.
These include accounting records, voters’ lists, business transactions and records
involving money, properties and personal information of the barangay staff, officials and
residents, etc.
Public Inspections of Open Access Records
Open Access Records should be made available to the public. This will ensure the
transparency of the government unit. This also builds trust between the local government
unit and the community it serves. According to the IRR of Rep. Act No. 9470, Rule 57,
Article 107:
An open access record shall be made available for inspection by the public as soon as it is reasonably practicable after a request to inspect the record
42
is made to the government office, the LGU, the approved repository, or the National Archives of the Philippines, whichever has possession of the open access record.
Thirteen barangays have Open Access Records available for inspection by the
public given that the people are authorized to see or inspect the records. Open access
records include barangay clearances, certifications, projects, resolutions, ordinances,
business permits, etc. Only Brgy. Teachers’ Village West does not allow the public to
view any barangay record. According to the Brgy. Treasurer, people who want to see
barangay records usually have bad motives. They just want to protect their records. He
also said that they may allow a person to view their records if this person has permission
from the Quezon City Hall.
Records Maintenance and Control
Centralized Receiving and Releasing Unit
It is important for any agency to have a centralized receiving and releasing unit to
have a smooth and organized flow of records activities. According to DECS Order No.
13-B, Rule 5.1, “Each agency shall have a centralized receiving and releasing unit of all
communications for proper recording and routing procedures under the accountability of
the Records Division, section or unit” (p.16).
Three barangays, Brgys. Socorro, Sangandaan and Bahay Toro have a centralized
receiving and releasing unit for all communications of records and transactions. They
have windows or tables for receiving and releasing records. Eleven barangays do not
have these. Five of the 11 barangays, Brgys. Pinyahan, Katipunan, Paraiso, Culiat and
43
Milagrosa have reception areas where people who have inquiries are entertained. The
remaining six barangays, Brgys. Teachers’ Village West, Obrero, Batasan Hills,
Kalusugan, Marilag and ESCOPA I do not have centralized receiving and releasing units
neither do they have reception areas. The people going to these barangays go directly to
the barangay section where they need to go.
These are the pictures of Brgy. Pinyahan and Brgy. Paraiso’s reception areas:
Figure 2. Barangay Pinyahan’s reception area Figure 3. Barangay Paraiso’s reception area
The following are the pictures of Brgy. Bahay Toro, Brgy. Sangandaan and Brgy.
Socorro’s centralized receiving and releasing units:
44
Figure 4. Barangay Bahay Toro’s centralized receiving and releasing unit
Figure 5. Barangay Sangandaan’s centralized receiving and releasing unit
45
Figure 6. Barangay Socorro’s centralized receiving and releasing unit
Records Security
Local government records are protected records. Thus, the security of these
records should be the responsibility of the Records Officer. According to DECS Order
No. 13-B, Rule 5.4:
The Records Officer and/or his duly authorized personnel shall have the sole access to the office files and shall be responsible for the security of records at all time. Confidential records shall be kept separately from the general files in secured file containers.
Nine barangays separate confidential records from the general files and keep these
in secured file containers. The other five barangays, Brgys. Pinyahan, Batasan Hills,
Milagrosa, Teachers’ Village West and ESCOPA I do not separate confidential records
from the general files. Most of the barangays’ Records Officers also serve as Brgy.
Secretaries so their records are mostly handled by them. Records Officers’ are
46
responsible for the security of the barangay files and they are the authorized personnel
who can have access to these files and records. The barangays have filing cabinets with
locks where they keep their records. They have vaults for confidential records. They also
lock the doors of their offices.
Storage of Records
In any agency, there should be a proper storage facility for records where only
authorized personnel can have access to. This is to ensure the safety and confidentiality
of barangay records. According to the IRR of Rep. Act No. 9470, Rule 40, Article 65:
Pursuant to the objectives of Rep. Act No. 9470, the following may be established, maintained and operated by the National Archives of the Philippines:(c) Agency Records Centers - to be managed and operated by each government office concerned, they shall be responsible for the maintenance and preservation of public records under the custody and control of each government office.
Each barangay has different sections. In eight barangays, Brgys. Culiat,
Pinyahan, Bahay Toro, Katipunan, Marilag, Sangandaan, Paraiso and Milagrosa, each
section keeps records related to their functions and activities. Each of six barangays,
Brgys. Teachers’ Village West, Obrero, Batasan Hills, Kalusugan, Socorro and ESCOPA
I have an assigned area for their records.
These are the pictures of the barangays with records kept in different sections
(See figures 7-11):
47
Figure 7. Barangay Culiat’s records area
Figure 8. Barangay Pinyahan’s records area
48
Figure 9. Barangay Bahay Toro’s records area
Figure 10. Barangay Marilag’s records area
49
Figure 11. Barangay Paraiso’s records area
Every barangay official is responsible for the records they keep, making the
process of filing and retrieving records faster and easier for them. However, for non-
current records with enduring value, there should be a storage where it could be
preserved and protected. According to DECS Order No. 13-B, Article IV, Rule 13:
Each Agency shall maintain and operate a records storage/mini archives of non-current records preparatory to their transfer to the Records Management and Archives Office [now known as the NAP], Records Center or to Archives repository”
Out of 14 barangays, 9 have records storage/mini-archives of non-current records.
This shows that these barangays comply with the provisions stated above. This is an
50
indication that most barangays know the importance of keeping and preserving archival
materials in their offices. Barangay Katipunan, and Milagrosa do not have records
storage/mini-archives of non-current records because their buildings are under
construction. In Brgys. Batasan Hills and Kalusugan, old and new records are in one
area. Brgy. Paraiso does not have old records because the previous administration left no
records for the succeeding term/ administration. This clearly shows that the awareness of
the different barangays on this requirement is not uniform. This may be due to their lack
of knowledge of the importance of their records or their inability to properly assess non-
current records with archival value. In Brgy. Culiat, they transfer records to the archives
storage after one year. In Brgy. Marilag, they transfer records after five years. In other
barangays, the transfer of records happens when their filing cabinets are full.
These are the pictures of Brgy. Culiat, Brgy. ESCOPA I, Brgy. Socorro and Brgy.
Teachers’ Village West’s records storage/mini-archives:
51
Figure 12. Barangay Culiat’s mini-archives
Figure 13. Barangay ESCOPA I’s mini-archives
52
Figure 14. Barangay Socorro’s mini-archives
Figure 15. Barangay Teachers’ Village West’s mini-archives
53
Offenses and Penalties
Public records such as records in barangays are very important not only to the
agency but to the people in the community. Thus, there should be a law protecting these
records, and penalties should be given to those who defy this law. According to the IRR
of Rep. Act No. 9470, Title IX, Rule 67, Article 123:
A person who, willfully or negligently, damages a public record or disposes of or destroys a public record in violation to the provisions of Rep. Act No. 9470 or contravenes or fails to comply with any provision of said Act or these Rules shall be deemed to have committed an offense.
Twelve barangays consider a person who, willfully or negligently, damages a
public record or disposes of or destroys a public record as someone who has committed
an offense. Barangay ESCOPA I answered No while Brgy. Socorro did not give an
answer. This shows that most barangay staff are aware that damaging and/or disposing
public records are considered criminal offenses. Their barangays staff may neglect
records in their offices, resulting to damages and loss of public records.
Disposal of Records
Records are important for any agency. These should be kept in a safe place where
only authorized personnel could have access to them. They should be preserved, filed and
organized in such a way that legal, financial, social and cultural use of these records
would be much easier and faster. Records should also be properly assessed before their
disposal because untimely disposal of records might result to loss of important records.
Because of daily transactions, records can easily accumulate in an agency, and there will
come a time when periodic disposal of records shall become necessary.
54
Disposal of Public and Protected Records
The disposal of records is procedural. This includes securing written authorization
from the ED and giving notice to the ED prior to disposal. According to the IRR of Rep.
Act No. 9470, Rule 30, Article 46:
No government department, bureau, agency and instrumentality shall dispose of, destroy or authorize the disposal or destruction of any public records, which are in the custody or under its control except with the prior written authority of the ED.
The heads of barangays also need to give the ED at least 30 days notice before
they dispose their records. This is required according to the IRR of Rep. Act No. 9470,
Rule 32, Article 48, which states that:
Before authorizing a disposition of public records as prescribed in Rep. Act No. 9470, the head of a government office shall give the ED at least thirty (30) days notice prior to:(a) the intention to transfer control of the public records, with a general list and description of the public records concerned;(b) the intention to dispose the public records, with a general list and description of the public records concerned; and(c) the place where additional information may be obtained on the public records concerned and the person to whom any comments may be sent.
Another law regarding the disposal of records is from the IRR of Rep. Act No.
9470, Rule 41, Article 68, which states that:
An LGU shall not dispose of protected records unless it has:(a) notified in writing the ED of its intention to dispose of the protected records;(b) identified the protected record concerned; and(c) specified how it intends to dispose of the protected records
All 14 barangays claim that they do not dispose public and protected records.
They also do not have a Records Disposition Schedule. If these barangays truly do not
55
dispose protected records, the records would have accumulated in their offices by now.
However, the oldest record is dated in 1992 in Brgy. Teachers’ Village West. The oldest
records in some barangays are dated from 2001-2010. In Brgy. Paraiso, they have only
started accumulating records when the current administration took office. The Brgy.
Secretary said that records from the past administrations were destroyed by the typhoon
Ondoy. The storage and preservation of such records should be the concern of the
barangays. Records officers have to decide the quantity and the time of disposal of old
and obsolete protected records. This could be done if a Records Disposition Schedule has
been created and approved by the NAP.
Disposal of Valueless Records
According to DECS Order No. 13-A, Article III, Rule 4. Request for
Authorization:
4.1 No agency shall destroy or sell any record without having first secured authority from the Director of the Records Management and Archives Office (RMAO) [now known as the National Archives of the Philippines]. 4.2 Each agency shall submit to the Records Management and Archives Office four (4) copies of accomplished “Request for Authority to Dispose of Records” (Form 3).
According to four barangays— Brgys. Teachers’ Village West, Kalusugan,
Obrero and Socorro, outdated records can already be disposed. However, none of the
barangays have ever disposed of any records during their terms. These barangays also
said that they do not submit request forms to the NAP. If ever they would have to dispose
records, representatives from the Commission on Audit (COA), General Service Office
(GSO), the head of the concerned unit and the Barangay Secretary would appraise,
56
examine, and recommend the method of disposal before the disposal of these records is
made. The witnesses involved in the disposal of records are the Barangay Officers,
Barangay Captains/Heads, Records Officers and COA representatives. These
representatives may be authoritative, but the ED of the NAP is not active in the process
of disposal of records. According to DECS Order No. 13-A, Article III, Rule 8: How
Disposals Are To Be Accomplished:
8.1 The Records Management and Archives Office [now known as the National Archives of the Philippines or NAP] together with representative of DECS and the COA may re-appraise and re-examine records for disposal as the need arises.8.2 To safeguard sanctity of the records and to check that the records to be disposed are the same records which were appraised and examined and that no insertions have been done, the actual disposal of records shall be witnessed by representatives of the agency concerned, the RMAO [now known as the NAP] and COA.
If records are not properly assessed prior to their disposal, it could lead to the
barangays’ unconscious disposal of important records. This could also lead to serious
administrative and legal problems.
There are procedures to be followed in disposing records. Authorization from the
ED of the NAP, should be initially secured before disposing the records. One of these
processes is conducting a public bidding for the disposal of valueless records. According
to DECS Order No. 13-A, Article III, Rule 9. Authority to Conduct Public Bidding:
9.1 Each agency shall conduct public bidding for the disposal of valueless records once a year following the pertinent provisions of public bidding and awarding of contracts of P.D. 1445. Preferably, the public bidding should be conducted towards the end of the calendar year so that the effectivity of the contract of the winning bidder shall be in January of the following year. 9.2 The Records Management and Archives Office [now known as the NAP] shall be furnished with a copy of the contract.
57
None of the four barangays conduct public biddings for the disposal of their
records. They also do not accomplish a certificate of disposal. It only implies that the
barangays do not comply with DECS Order No. 13-A, Article III, Rule 10. Certificate of
Disposal, which states that:
10.1 A certificate of Disposal (Form 6) shall be prepared in triplicate by the agency concerned and witnessed by the representatives of the Commission on Audit, Records Management and Archives Office [now known as the NAP] and the owning agency upon the delivery of the disposable records to the paper mills or warehouse of the winning bidder.10.2 The Certificate shall indicate the nature of the records, the manner, place and date of disposal and their approximate volume in cubic meters and weight.10.3 The original copy goes with the agency concerned, a copy for the Records Management and Archives Office and a copy for the Commission on Audit.10.4 Each agency shall submit a report on the disposal of valueless records to the Records Management and Archives Office.
Biddings for the disposal of valueless records involve money. Therefore, another
aspect of disposal is the proceeds of sales. According to DECS Order No. 13-A, Article
III, Rule 11.1, “All proceeds realized from the sale of disposals valueless records shall be
remitted either to the National Fund, to the Local Government Fund, or to the Corporate
Fund” (p.10). Since no disposals were made, this law was not observed.
These data indicate the lack of knowledge of most barangay officials to the
importance of coordinating with the ED of the National Archives of the Philippines. The
rule stated above is mandated to ensure the safety of public records. All records should be
properly assessed by authoritative personnel from agencies like the NAP before their
58
disposal. However, when barangays fail to comply with the laws stated above, the
security of records is at risk of being untimely disposed.
Barangay Officials and Staff
Each agency should have a Records Office. “A Records Office is the focal point
of the agency where records are received, released and maintained for future use”
(DECS Order No. 13-B, p.14). DECS Order No. 13-B, Article III, Rule 2.2 states that:
Each agency shall establish a Records Office for its records holdings and shall coordinate with the Records Management and Archives Office [now known as the NAP] in planning the office lay-out of the Records Unit.
For the Records Office to function properly, it is necessary that all barangay
officials and staff know how to properly handle records and how to manage them based
on the laws and standards. This would ensure that the integrity and safety of the barangay
records are secured.
Records Officer or an Archivist
Although all barangay staff should be well-trained in handling records, it is still
important to have a designated Records Officer in their respective offices. The Records
Officer should be the one responsible for the archives and records management of his/her
agency. According to the IRR of Rep. Act No. 9470, Title IV, Rule 20, Article 31:
The said Archives and Records Office/Unit shall be headed by a Records Officer or an Archivist who shall be appointed by the head of the government office subject to the applicable policies and guidelines promulgated by the CSC on appointment/designation of public servants in government service.
59
The following are the other laws related with appointing a Records Officer in
every government agency:
According to the IRR of Rep. Act No. 9470, Title IV, Rule 21:
Article 33. Each government agency shall appoint qualified Records Officers for the purpose of implementing and overseeing a records management program and to serve as liaison with the National Archives of the Philippines.Article 34. In the absence of a qualified Records Officer, a Records Custodian may be designated temporarily by the head of the agency or appointing body” (Rep. Act No. 9470 IRR, 2008).
According to DECS Order No. 13-B, Article III, Rule 2.3:
Each agency shall appoint a qualified records officer who shall coordinate across the department lines on their records activities and shall have the responsibility and control of all the records holdings of the agency in his or her possession and custody.
Out of 14 barangays, only 8 of them have Records Officers in their offices. The
barangays with Records Officers are: Brgys. Socorro, Kalusugan, Batasan Hills,
Katipunan, Culiat, Bahay Toro, Marilag and Teachers’ Village West. The job titles of the
Records Officers in these barangays vary from Records Officer to Records Custodian,
Barangay Secretary, Barangay Treasurer, Property Custodian and Filing Clerk. This
shows that there are still a lot of barangays who do not comply with the laws stated
above. This can lead to improper handling of records since there is no one in-charge of
managing the records of these barangays. The data also show that in most barangays,
their Brgy. Secretaries and Treasurers are the two main staff in-charge of managing their
office records.
In Table 2, the responsibilities of the Records Officers in each barangay based on
the IRR of Rep. Act No. 9470 and DECS Order No. 13-B are listed.
60
Table 2
The responsibilities of the Records Officers (ROs) in the barangays
Responsibilities of the Records
Officers Cul
iat
Mar
ilag
Soco
rro
Bah
ay T
oro
Bat
asan
H
ills
Kat
ipun
an
Teac
hers
’ V
illag
e W
est
Kal
usug
an
Tota
l
Assess/appraise public records X X X X 4
Classify public records (open access
or restricted access)
X X X X X X X 7
Arrange/organize records X X X X X X X X 8
Safekeeping of the valueless records X X X X X X 6
Safekeeping of public records X X X X X X X X 8
Recommend transfer of records to
the Records Center or the NAP
0
Request for the disposal of public
records and valueless records
X X X X 4
Coordinate with the Executive
Director (ED) of the NAP
0
Coordinate with the Regional
Archives
0
Notify all officials and employees
of the requirements and penalties as
provided for under Rep. Act No.
9470
X X X X 4
Attend Records Management
Training Programs
X X X 3
Conduct an inventory of public
records
X X X X X 5
Deposit copies of original deeds of
all government-owned properties
and two copies of all reports and
publications to the NAP
0
61
Only eight barangays have Records Officers in their respective offices. Almost, if
not all, Records Officers classify based on access restrictions, arrange and organize
records in their barangays. This shows that most barangay Records Officers practice the
basic responsibilities of a records manager. However, only four out of the eight Records
Officers assess/appraise public records. This should be the most important responsibility
of the Records Officers since this is the first step in organizing and archiving materials.
This indicates that in most barangays, there is still failure in identifying what materials
and records have lasting value, worthy to be kept and preserved permanently.
Out of the eight Records Officers, only four of them (Brgys. Culiat, Bahay Toro,
Batasan Hills and Katipunan) notify all officials and employees of the requirements and
penalties as provided for under Rep. Act No. 9470. This should be first thing Records
Officers should relay to their colleagues in their respective barangays. They must make
sure that all of the barangay personnel and staff know about archives and records
management laws, rules and regulations. This way, their barangays’ records activities
would be more organized and systematic.
When it comes to coordinating with the National Archives of the Philippines
(NAP), its Executive Director (ED) and the Regional Archives, all of the Records
Officers fail to do their job. In the other data provided by the barangays, they all claim
that they have never had contact with the NAP or its ED.
As shown in Table 2, only three of the barangay Records Officers attend Records
Management Training Programs. This shows that barangays’ Records Officers seldom
62
attend training programs. Due to the lack of trained and qualified records personnel,
records may be mishandled without the officers knowing it.
Barangays should also conduct an inventory of their public records. Although not
stated as a responsibility of the barangay Records Officer, the person in-charge of this
should be the Records Officers. According to the IRR of Rep. Act No. 9470, Rule 25,
Article 39:
All government offices shall regularly conduct an inventory of their public records and shall be mandated to keep the following data in their respective registry:
(a) all public records under its custody;(b) all public records transferred to the National Archives of the Philippines;(c) public records disposed of with authority under Sec. 18 and 19 of Rep. Act No. 9470;(d) data of deferred transfer under Sec. 21 of Rep. Act No. 9470;(e) a public access register that contains information on:
(1) restrictions on public access to public records imposed under Sec. 31 (g) of Rep. Act No. 9470;(2) prohibitions imposed under Sec. 36 of Rep. Act No. on public access to public archives or protected records under the control of the ED;(3) the grounds for the prohibitions and restrictions stipulated under Sec. 36 and 37 of Rep. Act No. 9470; and(4) the conditions agreed to under Sec. 23 of Rep. Act No. 9470 as to public access for protected records is transferred to the control of the ED.
Of the eight barangays with Records Officers, five of them (Brgys. Kalusugan,
Katipunan, Culiat, Bahay Toro and Marilag) conduct an inventory of their public
records, while three do not. When asked how often they conduct their inventories, their
answers vary from once a year, thrice a year, once a month, quarterly, every end of the
Barangay Head’s term or as the need arises. Their last inventories were conducted on
63
December 2010, September 2010, August 2010, October 2010 and December 2010,
respectively.
The data in their registry include: all public records under their custody, data of
deferred transfer and public access register. The registries should be accessible to the
public according to the IRR of the Rep. Act No. 9470, Article 40, which states that:
“Heads of all government departments, bureaus, agencies and instrumentalities concerned
shall endeavor and ensure the full public accessibility of said Registry” (p.1469).
Only the registries of Brgys. Kalusugan, Katipunan and Marilag are accessible to
the public. This indicates that in most barangays, their registries are still not open to the
public. Unless the person requests for authorization to access of the barangay records, the
public cannot easily access the barangay registries. This may be part of the safety
precautions of the barangays.
Another responsibility of the barangay is to deposit a copy of the original deeds of
government-owned properties and copies of reports and publications to the NAP.
According to the IRR of Rep. Act No. 9470:
Rule 26, Article 42: All government agencies, offices and institutions shall deposit with the National Archives of the Philippines a copy of original deeds of all government-owned properties. The National Archives of the Philippines shall give a receipt for each deed received into its custody.
Rule 74, Article 135: The National Archives of the Philippines is hereby constituted the central depository for the reports, publications, rules and regulations of the government, whether national or local, and all political subdivisions thereof. It shall be the duty of all government agencies and political subdivisions to deposit with the National Archives of the Philippines two (2) copies of all reports and publications.
64
All the barangays with Records Officers do not deposit copies of original deeds of
all government-owned properties as well as two copies of all reports and publications
from the barangay to the National Archives of the Philippines. None of the barangays has
contact with the NAP.
Barangay Secretary
In most of the barangays, the Secretaries are usually the ones responsible for
managing the records. Barangay Secretaries should know the policies, rules and
regulations in archives and records management to ensure the smooth and correct process
of their barangay records. They are also the main producers of barangay records aside
from the Brgy. Treasurers, so they must know how to handle records properly.
Table 3 shows the responsibilities and duties of Barangay Secretaries as stated in
the Local Government Code of the Philippines or Rep. Act No. 7160. According to Rep.
Act No. 7160, Chapter 5, Section 394 (d), the barangay secretary shall:
(1) Keep custody of all records of the sangguniang barangay and the barangay assembly meetings;(2) Prepare and keep the minutes of all meetings of the sangguniang barangay and the barangay assembly;(3) Prepare a list of members of the barangay assembly, and have the same posted in conspicuous places within the barangay;(4) Assist in the preparation of all necessary forms for the conduct of barangay elections, initiatives, referenda or plebiscites, in coordination with the Comelec;(5) Assist the municipal civil registrar in the registration of births, deaths, and marriages;(6) Keep an updated record of all inhabitants of the barangay containing the following items of information: name, address, place and date of birth, sex, civil status, citizenship, occupation, and such other items of information as may be prescribed by law or ordinances;
65
(7) Submit a report on the actual number of barangay residents as often as may be required by the Sangguniang Barangay.
Table 3
Responsibilities and duties of Barangay Secretaries on archives and records management
Responsibilities/ Duties regarding
archives and records management Mar
ilag
Soco
rro
Bah
ay
Sang
anda
Bat
asan
Hill
s
Para
iso
ESC
OPA
Mila
gros
a
Piny
ahan
Kat
ipun
an
Teac
hers
’
Vill
age
Wes
t
Obr
ero
Kal
usug
an
Cul
iat
Tota
l
Keep custody of all records of the
sangguniang barangay and the
barangay assembly meetings.
X X X X X X X X X X X X X X 14
Prepare and keep the minutes of all
meetings of the sangguniang
barangay and the barangay
assembly.
X X X X X X X X X X X X X X 14
Prepare a list of members of the
barangay assembly, and have the
same posted in conspicuous places
within the barangay.
X X X X X X X X X X X X 12
Assist in the preparation of all
necessary forms for the conduct of
barangay elections, initiatives,
referenda or plebiscites, in
coordination with the Comelec.
X X X X X X X X X X X X 12
Assist the municipal civil registrar in
the registration of births, deaths, and
marriages.
X X X X X X X X X 9
Keep an updated record of all
inhabitants of the barangay
containing the following items of
information: name, address, place
and date of birth, sex, civil status,
citizenship, occupation, and such
other items of information as may be
prescribed by law or ordinances.
X X X X X X X X X X 10
Submit a report on the actual number
of barangay residents as often as
may be required by the sangguniang
barangay.
X X X X X X X X X X X 11
66
As shown in Table 3, most of the Brgy. Secretaries are aware of their
responsibilities in records management which are stated under Rep. Act No. 7160.
However, there is no way of knowing if they are doing the listed duties and
responsibilities since the researcher only conducted a survey and did not intend to
observe and immerse to the offices of the 14 barangays. The findings also show that
barangay officials are more aware of the laws stated in The Local Government Code of
the Philippines or Rep. Act No. 7160 compared to the National Archives of the
Philippines Act of 2007 or Rep. Act No. 9470.
Barangay Treasurer
Aside from the Barangay Secretary, the Treasurer also produces and handles
significant amount of documents and records in the barangay.
Table 4 shows the responsibilities and duties of the Barangay Treasurers related to
archives and records management according to the Local Government Code of the
Philippines otherwise known as Rep. Act No. 7160. According to Rep. Act No. 7160,
Chapter 5, Section 395 (e), the barangay treasurer shall:
(2) Collect and issue official receipts for taxes, fees, contributions, monies, materials, and all other resources accruing to the barangay treasury and deposit the same in the account of the barangay as provided under Title Five, Book II of this Code;(3) Disburse funds in accordance with the financial procedures provided in this Code;(4) Submit to the punong barangay a statement covering the actual and estimates of income and expenditures for the preceding and ensuing calendar years, respectively, subject to the provisions of Title Five, Book II of this Code;(5) Render a written accounting report of all barangay funds and property under his custody at the end of each calendar year, and ensure that such
67
report shall be made available to the members of the barangay assembly and other government agencies concerned.
Table 4
Responsibilities and duties of Barangay Treasurers on archives and records management
Responsibilities/ Duties
regarding archives and records
managementM
arila
g
Soco
rro
Bah
ay T
oro
Sang
anda
an
Bat
asan
Hill
s
Para
iso
ESC
OPA
I
Mila
gros
a
Piny
ahan
Kat
ipun
anTe
ache
rs’
Vill
age
Wes
t
Obr
ero
Kal
usug
an
Cul
iat
Tota
l
Collect and issue official receipts
for taxes, fees, contributions,
monies, materials, and all other
resources accruing to the
barangay treasury and deposit the
same in the account of the
barangay.
X X X X X X X X X X X X X X 14
Disburse funds in accordance
with the financial procedures
provided in Rep. Act No. 7160.
X X X X X X X X X X X X X X 14
Submit to the punong barangay a
statement covering the actual and
estimates of income and
expenditures for the preceding
and ensuing calendar years,
respectively, subject to the
provisions of Rep. Act No. 7160.
X X X X X X X X X X X X X X 14
Render a written accounting
report of all barangay funds and
property under his custody at the
end of each calendar year, and
ensure that such report shall be
made available to the members of
the barangay assembly and other
government agencies concerned.
X X X X X X X X X X X X X 13
68
Table 4 shows the self-assessment of the Brgy. Treasurers. The Brgy. Treasurers
may be aware of the listed responsibilities and duties in Table 4, but it is possible that
they do not practice all of these.
Barangay Head
Being the head of the barangay, the Barangay Head/Captain also has a great
responsibility in making sure that their archives and records management process is
running smoothly and systematically. If the Barangay Head is not aware of the laws
related to archives and records management, it is difficult for its staff, especially its
Records Officer to implement the necessary orders from Rep. Act No. 7160, Rep. Act
No. 9470, DECS Order No. 13-A and 13-B. The head of the agency should be the one
responsible in overseeing the activities of the whole agency.
Table 5 shows the responsibilities and duties of Barangay Heads in archives and
records management according to the IRR of Rep. Act No. 9470.
69
Table 5
Responsibilities and duties of Barangay Heads on archives and records management
Responsibilities/ Duties regarding
archives and records management Mar
ilag
Soco
rro
Bah
ay T
oro
Sang
anda
an
Bat
asan
Hill
sPa
rais
o
ESC
OPA
I
Mila
gros
a
Piny
ahan
Kat
ipun
an
Teac
hers
’
Vill
age
Obr
ero
Kal
usug
an
Cul
iat
Tota
l
Grant access to all of your records for
audit purposes.
X X X X X X X X X X X 11
Classify the records as either Open
Access Records or Restricted Access
Records before transferring to the
custody of the ED
X X X X X X X X X 9
Classify local government archives as
either an Open Access Records or
Restricted Access Records
0
Out of the 14 barangays, only 11 Barangay Heads grant access to all of their
records for audit purposes. Barangays Obrero, ESCOPA I and Batasan Hills do not
comply with the law written in IRR of Rep. Act No. 9470, Rule 52, Article 87, which
states that:
70
All heads of each government office, whether national or local, shall have the duty to grant access to all of its records for audit purposes. Records found not included in their agency's RDS shall be entered in the prescribed form for approval of the National Archives of the Philippines.
Being the head of the agency, it is the responsibility of the Barangay Head to
classify the records as Open or Restricted Access Records. According to the IRR of Rep.
Act No. 9470, Title VII, Rule 53, Article 89:
When public records have been in existence for thirty (30) years or more are about to be transferred to the custody and control of the ED under Sec. 20 of Rep. Act No. 9470, the head of the controlling government office shall, in accordance with this Rule and the succeeding Rule, classify the records as either:
(a) Open Access Records; or(b) Restricted Access Records.
The barangays do not have records that are more than 30 years old. So it can be
said that the Barangay Heads do not exercise this duty. However, Table 5 shows that
there are nine barangays who are aware of the law stated above.
When local government records become local government archives, the Brgy.
Head has the responsibility to classify these. According to the IRR of Rep. Act No. 9470,
Rule 55, Article 99:
When a local government record becomes a local government archive, the head of the local government shall classify it as either:(a) an Open Access Records; or(b) a Restricted Access Records”.
Out of the 14 barangays, only 9 have mini-archives units. None of them classify
their archives as Open Access or Restricted Access Records. All their records in the
archives office, regardless of their type, are in one room.
71
Since barangays are under a larger geographic and political jurisdiction, which is
Quezon City, one may assume that the City Government of Quezon City, more
specifically, the Quezon City Archives, has control and responsibilities on the archives
and recordkeeping activities of the smaller units such as the barangays. The researcher
conducted a short interview with Mr. Glen Berdin, archivist of the Quezon City Archives,
to verify the responsibilities or what the Quezon City Archives can do for the records of
the different barangays in Quezon City. According to Mr. Glen Berdin, their
recordkeeping is okay but is still not enough. They have compact shelves inside their
office. However, they do not have a dehumidifier which aids to control temperature in the
room and thus help maintain and preserve their records. He also said that some of their
personnel lack training in proper recordkeeping. At present, they have a database
containing a list of their records and files. Their office has a proposal to link other local
government units to the database they use in their office. They proposed their idea to the
councilors but have failed to execute their plan. Some of the reasons include low budget
and the lack of willingness and cooperation of other LGUs. Their office does not have a
specific responsibility to the barangays’ records management system. However, their
office is open to the barangay units. Requests from barangays are entertained and they
provide the records that the other LGUs need. He said that there are proposals on how to
improve recordkeeping practices, but they do not have enough budget to pursue these
plans.
In light of the cited data, it can be concluded that almost all the barangays
involved in this study, do not comply with the requirements stated in the IRR of Rep. Act
72
No. 9470, Rep. Act No. 7160, and DECS Order No. 13-A and 13-B. The Records
Officers of the barangays who claimed that they comply with the laws failed to show
proof or tangible evidences that will strengthen their claim. All of these barangays never
had contact with the Executive Director of the National Archives of the Philippines, who
is supposed to be the head in enforcing and disseminating information regarding these
laws and guidelines to the local government units, such as barangays. The head of the
Quezon City Archives said that they do not have a specific responsibility to the archives
and records management system of the barangays. There have been proposals done
before for the improvement of the records management systems, however, these plans
were and would not be successfully implemented if there would still be no budget,
cooperation and support from the LGUs.
73
CHAPTER V
SUMMARY, CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS
Summary
Restatement of the Problem
The main objective of this research study was to find out the extent of compliance
and non-compliance of current policies and practices of 15 barangays with the relevant
laws, rules and regulations on archives and records management. The points of reference
and guide used to achieve the objective are Rep. Act No. 9470, IRR of Rep. Act No.
9470, Rep. Act No. 7160, DECS Order No. 13-A and 13-B.
The study aimed to answer the following questions:
1. What are the barangays’ provisions for archives and records management?
a. How many barangays have a separate Archives and Records Office/Unit?
b. Do the barangays have existing archival systems in their offices?
74
c. What are the barangays’ policies and programs on archives and records
management?
d. What are the barangays’ practices on archives and records management?
d.1. What are the policies and practices of the barangays regarding the
disposal of:
d.1.a. their protected records
d.1.b. their valueless records
d.1.c. their public records
e. How do the barangays store and maintain their records?
2. What are the current archives and records management practices that are
being done by the Staff in the barangays?
a. How many barangays have Records Officers (RO) in their offices?
a.1. What are the responsibilities and duties of the RO regarding archives
and records management?
a.2. What are the practices of the RO in handling barangay records?
b. Barangay Secretaries:
b.1. What are the responsibilities and duties of the Barangay Secretaries
regarding archives and records management?
c. Barangay Treasurers:
c.1. What are the responsibilities and duties of the Barangay Treasurers
regarding archives and records management?
d. Barangay Heads:
75
d.1. What are the responsibilities and duties of the Barangay Heads
regarding archives and records management?
3. What are the recommendations that could be suggested to further improve the
archives and records management practices of the barangays?
Description of Methodology
Laws and other related regulations on archives and records management were first
identified before a survey questionnaire was structured. The focus of the study were the
barangay provisions for archives and records management and the archives and records
management staff. However, due to unforeseen circumstances only 14 barangays were
able to accomplish the questionnaires. Follow-up interviews were made as the
questionnaires were collected. The results were then analyzed and interpreted.
Principal Findings of the Study
Following is the summary of the results:
1. None of the barangays has an existing archival system in their offices.
Barangays Sangandaan, Bahay Toro, Katipunan, Paraiso, Culiat and
Kalusugan claimed they have existing archival system in their offices.
76
However, they fail to show evidences such as written policies and programs to
support their claims.
2. None of the barangays has a Records Disposition Schedule, Records
Management Operations Manual, Retention Code, Records Management
Program, Records Management Improvement Committee and Production
Control Program.
3. Most of the barangays’ policies on archives and records management are not
formally written.
4. All 14 barangays consider local government records as protected records.
5. Thirteen barangays have Open Access Records available for inspection by the
public, given that there is authorization already given to those who wish to see
or inspect the records. Only Brgy. Teachers’ Village West does not allow the
public to view any barangay record.
6. Three barangays, Brgys. Socorro, Sangandaan and Bahay Toro have
centralized receiving and releasing units for all communications of records
and transactions. They have windows or tables for receiving and releasing
records. Barangays Pinyahan, Katipunan, Paraiso, Culiat and Milagrosa have
reception areas where people who have inquiries are entertained. Barangays
Teachers’ Vilage West, Obrero, Batasan Hills, Kalusugan, Marilag and
ESCOPA I do not have centralized receiving and releasing units neither do
they have reception areas.
77
7. The barangays have filing cabinets with locks where they keep their records.
They have vaults for confidential records and also lock the doors of their
offices.
8. In eight barangays, Brgys. Culiat, Pinyahan, Bahay Toro, Katipunan,
Marilag, Sangandaan, Paraiso and Milagrosa, each section keeps records
related to their functions and activities. Each of six barangays, Brgys.
Teachers’ Village West, Obrero, Batasan Hills, Kalusugan, Socorro and
ESCOPA I has an assigned area for their records.
9. Out of 14 barangays, 9 have records storage/mini-archives of non-current
records.
10. All 14 barangays claim that they do not dispose public and protected records.
11. Out of 14 barangays, only 8 of them have Records Officers in their offices.
The barangays with Records Officers are: Brgys. Socorro, Kalusugan,
Batasan Hills, Katipunan, Culiat, Bahay Toro, Marilag and Teachers’ Village
West. The job titles of the Records Officers in these barangays vary from
Records Officer, Records Custodian, Barangay Secretary, Barangay
Treasurer, Property Custodian and Filing Clerk.
12. Most of the Brgy. Secretaries, Brgy. Treasurers and Brgy. Heads are aware of
their responsibilities in records management according to Rep. Act No. 7160.
However, there is no way of knowing if they are actually doing these duties
and responsibilities, since the researcher only did a survey.
78
13. Barangay officials are more aware of the laws stated in The Local
Government Code of the Philippines or Rep. Act No. 7160 compared to the
National Archives of the Philippines Act of 2007 or Rep. Act No. 9470.
Conclusion
This study was conducted to find out the extent of compliance and non-
compliance of 15 selected barangays in Quezon City to the relevant laws, rules and
regulations on archives and records management. A questionnaire and follow-up
interviews based on Rep. Act No. 9470, Rep. Act No. 7160, DECS Order No. 13-A and
13-B have been used to gather data. In the data gathered by the researcher, not one among
the 14 barangays has complied with all the requirements prescribed by the stated laws,
rules and regulations. Most of the barangay officers are aware of Rep. Act No. 7160
which is the Local Government Code of 1991. However, these officers are not
knowledgeable on Rep. Act No. 9470 or the National Archives of the Philippines Act of
2007 and DECS Order No. 13-A, which state the Guidelines on the Decentralized
Disposal of Valueless Records in Government Agencies and DECS Order No. 13-B,
which states the Rules and Regulations Governing the Coordination of Records
Management and Archives Function. These are the laws, rules and regulations related to
archives and records management in the barangay level. All the barangays are mandated
to know and practice these but unfortunately they do not. It is also shown in the data
gathered by the researcher that none of the barangays has any contact with the Executive
Director of the National Archives of the Philippines.
79
Under this prevailing situation, it can be concluded that there is a great and urgent
need for the barangays in Quezon City to upgrade and standardize their archive and
records management systems in accordance with the Republic Acts and DECS Orders to
better serve their constituencies. There is also a need to coordinate with the proper
government offices like the NAP to ensure that their archives and records management
systems are in accordance to the relevant laws and regulations.
Recommendations
To upgrade and standardize the archives and records management system of the
Q.C. barangays, the following recommendations are hereby made:
1. The Barangay Heads should be required to attend meetings informing them of the
need and importance of establishing formal records offices or units in their
barangays for the efficient management and control of all the records generated in
their offices. They should be made to realize the usefulness of their records to
their constituencies in their communities. They should be required to strictly
observe their responsibilities and duties regarding archives and records
management. They should also know how to prepare and request for their
barangay budget to be able to accommodate necessary funding for the
establishment of a proper Archives and Records Office/Unit and the salaries of
their archives and records management staff.
2. The Executive Director of the NAP should have a definite supervising schedule
for visiting and inspecting barangay Archives and Records Units to influence the
80
Records Officers to do their responsibilities and duties as specified in the
Republic Acts and DECS Orders.
3. The NAP, together with the local government units of Quezon City (i.e. Quezon
City and barangays) should prepare and implement programs for seminars and
training sessions on archives and records management for Records Officers and
Records Custodians of barangays.
4. The NAP authority may institute programs to inspire the barangay Records
Officers to do their best in complying with the Republic Acts and DECS Orders
by giving awards to the best archives and records management office among
different barangays in the city.
5. A Records Management and Archives Committee should be created. This would
be the body responsible for the overall management, policy and decision-making
activities regarding barangay archives and records.
81
REFERENCES
Unpublished Works:
Buenrostro, I.S. (2005). Reference Service and Provisions for Access of Selected Archives
of Government Institutions in Metro Manila. Unpublished BLIS thesis. University
of the Philippines Diliman, School of Library and Information Studies.
Garcia, J.P. (2009). Establishing Government Municipal Archives Case Studies of Local
Government Archives’ Practices. Unpublished MLIS thesis. University of the
Philippines Diliman, School of Library and Information Studies.
82
Golfo, M.G. (2010). Towards a standard archives and records management system for
government corporation and financial institutions in Metro Manila. Unpublished
MLIS thesis. University of the Philippines Diliman, School of Library and
Information Studies.
Nofuente, E.L. (1981). Records management practices of international organizations in
the Philippines : a survey. Unpublished MLS thesis. University of the Philippines
Diliman, School of Library and Information Studies.
Rey, E.C. (1997). Survey of training needs on archives administration for records
personnel and archivists in the local government units in Region I. Unpublished
MLS thesis. University of the Philippines Diliman, School of Library and
Information Studies.
Silagpo, M.V.H. (2008). A Study in the Existing Records Management Practices of
Sangguniang Panlungsod ng San Jose Del Monte. Unpublished BLIS thesis.
University of the Philippines Diliman, School of Library and Information Studies.
Articles and Book Chapters:
Cox, R. J. (c2002) . The archivist and community. In J.A. Bastian & B. Alexander (Eds.) ,
Community Archives: the shaping of memory (pp. 251-264) . London: Facet.
83
Yeo, G. (c2002) . Principles and practice in records management and archives. In J.A.
Bastian & B. Alexander (Eds.) , Community Archives: the shaping of memory
(pp. ix-x) . London: Facet.
Electronic Sources:
Bridges, E. C. (1991). State Record Laws and the Preservation of an Archival
Record. American Society for Information Science. Bulletin of the American
Society for Information Science, 18(1), 15. Retrieved March 20, 2011, from
ABI/INFORM Global. (Document ID: 192022).
DECS Order No. 13-A, S. 1988 - Guidelines on the Decentralized Disposal of Valueless
Records in Government Agencies. Retrieved December 4, 2011 from the World
Wide Web: http :// lgrc . dilg 10. org / v 2/ KP / Gov / Records / RAMPAnnexes . pdf
DECS Order No. 13-B, S. 1988 - Rules and Regulations Governing the Coordination of
Records Management and Archives Function. Retrieved December 4, 2011 from
the World Wide Web:
http :// lgrc . dilg 10. org / v 2/ KP / Gov / Records / RAMPAnnexes . pdf
Raths, D. (2010). Many federal agencies struggle with records management. KM
World, 19(8), 6,30. Retrieved March 20, 2011, from ABI/INFORM Global.
(Document ID: 2136861801).
84
Republic Act No. 7160. (1991) An act providing for a local government code of 1991.
Retrieved December 1, 2010 from The LAWPHiL Project:
http :// www . lawphil . net / statutes / repacts / ra 1991/ ra _7160_1991. html
Republic Act No. 9470. (2007) An act to strengthen the system of management and
administration of archival records, establishing for the purpose the National
Archives of the Philippines, and for other purposes. Retrieved December 1, 2010
from the World Wide Web: http :// www . senate . gov . ph / republic _ acts / ra
%209470. pdf
Republic Act No. 9470 Implementing Rules and Regulations (2008), O.G. vol. 104 (no.9),
p.1458-1482. Retrieved July 19, 2011 from Global Legal Information Network:
http://www.glin.gov/view.action?glinID=225283
Society of American Archivists. (2005). A glossary of archival and records terminology.
Retrieved December 6, 2010 from the World Wide Web:
http :// www . archivists . org / glossary / term _ details . asp ? DefinitionKey =200
Society of American Archivists. (2005). A glossary of archival and records terminology.
Retrieved December 6, 2010 from the World Wide Web:
http :// www . archivists . org / glossary / term _ details . asp ? DefinitionKey =525
85
Swartz, N. (2008). New records standards for New Zealand. Information Management
Journal, 42(6), 16. Retrieved March 20, 2011, from ABI/INFORM Global.
(Document ID: 1601672671).
Appendix A
(Cover Letter)
_____________________
_____________________
_____________________
Good day!
I am an undergraduate student from the School of Library and Information
Studies in UP Diliman. I am conducting a research, entitled: “A Study of the Compliance
of Selected Barangays in Quezon City to Relevant Laws, Rules and Regulations on
Archives and Records Management”, for our course LIS 200 (Undergraduate Thesis).
This research aims to determine the compliance and non-compliance of Barangays in
Archives and Records Management-related laws and guidelines.
I respectfully ask for your cooperation by letting me conduct my research in your
Barangay. I will distribute the questionnaire to the officer-in-charge of your Archives and
86
Records Office. All information gathered will be confidential and will be used for
academic purposes only.
I greatly appreciate your help. Thank you very much.
Respectfully yours,
Vivian Sarah C. Juanson
Noted by:
__________________________ ___________________________
Prof. Iyra Buenrostro Prof. Johann Frederick A. CabbabAdviser Dean, UP SLIS
Appendix B
Survey Questionnaire
Name:______________________ Name of the Barangay:____________________
Position/ Job Title:___________ Contact no.:_____________________________
Instructions: Please answer the questionnaire as honestly as possible. Check your
answers in the yes/no questions. All the information that you will give to us will be used
only for educational purposes. Your personal information will remain confidential and
will be treated with utmost confidentiality.
1. Do you have a separate Archives and Records Office/Unit in your Barangay?
>>Records Office/Unit--refers to an organizational unit responsible for planning,
developing, prescribing, disseminating and enforcing policies, rules and regulations and
coordinating agency-wide records management program (Rep. Act No. 9470 IRR, 2008).
Yes No
87
* If yes, who is the officer-in-charge in this office?_________________________
2. Do you have a Records Center in your barangay?
Yes No
* If yes, where is it located? Describe it please.
______________________________________________________
______________________________________________________
3. Do you have an existing archival system in your Barangay?
Yes No
4. Do you have a Records Officer (RO) in your Barangay?
Yes No
* If yes, what do you call him/her (job title):
Records officer
Archivist
Records Custodian
Others:______________________
5. Do you conduct an inventory of your public records?
>>Public records—refers to record or classes of records, in any form, in whole or
in part, created or received, whether before or after the effectivity of this Act, by a
government agency in the conduct of its affairs, and have been retained by that
government agency or its successors as evidence or because of the information contained
therein (Rep. Act No. 9470, 2007).
Yes No
* If Yes, how often?______________________________________
* When was the last inventory done?________________________
* What data are included in your registry? (check all that applies)
All public records under your custody
All public records transferred to the National Archives of the
Philippines
88
Public records disposed of with authority from the NAP
Data of deferred transfer
Public access register
* Is this registry accessible to the public?
Yes No
6. Does your RO coordinate with the Executive Director (ED) of the National Archives
of the Philippines (NAP) regarding your Barangay’s Archives and Records Management
policies and practices?
Yes No
7. Do you deposit copy of original deeds of all government-owned properties to the
NAP?
Yes No
8. Was your records office ever inspected by the Executive Director of the NAP?
Yes No
* If yes, when was it last inspected (year of inspection will do)?___________
9. Do you have a Records Disposition Schedule (RDS)?
Yes
* If yes, was it approved by the ED of the NAP? Yes No
No
10. Do you dispose public records under your custody?
Yes No
* If yes, was it first approved by the ED of the NAP before the disposal?
Yes No
* Did the Barangay Head give the Executive Director at least thirty (30)
days notice prior to the intention to transfer control, intention to dispose
and the place where additional information may be obtained on the public
records?
89
Yes No
* How often do you dispose records?__________________
11. Do you transfer public records to the NAP?
Yes No
* If yes, what records? (Please check all the possible answers)
Archival materials/collections of government office which are
more than 30 yrs. old
Non-current public records with permanent and enduring archival
value
Non-current public records that has thirty (30) years or more
retention periods
Inactive personnel records (201 files) with archival value
Others:________________________________________________
12. Does your Records Officer (or anyone responsible in records management in your
barangay) notify the NAP of any actual, impending or threatened unlawful removal,
defacing, alteration or destruction of records?
Yes No
13. Do you consider local government records as protected records?
>>Local government records—refers to records in any form, in whole or in part,
created or received, whether before or after the effectivity of this Act, by an LGU in the
conduct of its affairs (Rep. Act No. 9470, 2007).
Yes No
14. Do you dispose protected records?
>>Protected records—refers to local government records containing data that are
important from
economic, social, political, legal, national security, scientific, cultural,
technological or other aspects, which are indispensable for the research of historical past,
90
for becoming acquainted with and understanding it, and/or for the continuous fulfillment
of public duties and the realization of citizens' rights, which are not or only partially
available from other sources (Rep. Act No. 9470, 2007).
Yes No
* If yes,
a. Did you notify in writing the ED of your intention to dispose the
protected records?
Yes No
b. Did you identify the protected record concerned?
Yes No
c. Did you specify how you intend to dispose of the protected records?
Yes No
15. Does the head of your barangay grant access to all of your records for audit purposes?
Yes No
16. Does the head of your barangay classify the records as either Open Access Records or
Restricted Access Records before transferring to the custody of the ED?
Yes No
17. When a local government record becomes a local government archive, does the head
of the local government classify it as either an Open Access Records or a Restricted
Access Records?
>>Local government records—refers to records in any form, in whole or in part,
created or received, whether before or after the effectivity of this Act, by an LGU in the
conduct of its affairs (Rep. Act No. 9470, 2007).
>>Local government archives—refers to local government records that have been
collected by the controlling local government unit that served as historical evidences in
the performance of its duties (Rep. Act No. 9470, 2007).
Yes No
91
18. Are the Open Access Records available for inspection by the public after a request to
inspect the record is made to the barangay?
Yes No
19. Do you consider a person who, willfully or negligently, damages a public record or
disposes of or destroys a public record as someone who has committed an offense?
Yes No
20. What are the responsibilities of the Records Officer (RO) in your Barangay? (Please
check all that applies)
Assess/appraise public records
Classify public records (open access or restricted access)
Arrange/organize records
Safekeeping of the valueless records
Safekeeping of public records
Recommend transfer of records to the Records Center or the NAP
Request for the disposal of public records and valueless records
Coordinate with the Executive Director (ED) of the NAP
Coordinate with the Regional Archives
Notify all officials and employees of the requirements and penalties as
provided for under Rep. Act No. 9470
Attend Records Management Training Programs
Please provide a list of the training programs attended (name of the
event, name of the organization who handled the program, place,
date):
_________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________
Others:_____________________________________________________
92
21. Do you deposit with the NAP two (2) copies of all reports and publications from your
barangay?
Yes No
22. Please check the applicable responsibilities/duties/roles of your Barangay Secretary
on the list:
Keep custody of all records of the sangguniang barangay and the barangay
assembly meetings.
Prepare and keep the minutes of all meetings of the sangguniang barangay
and the barangay assembly.
Prepare a list of members of the barangay assembly, and have the same
posted in conspicuous places within the barangay.
Assist in the preparation of all necessary forms for the conduct of
barangay elections, initiatives, referenda or plebiscites, in coordination
with the Comelec.
Assist the municipal civil registrar in the registration of births, deaths, and
marriages.
Keep an updated record of all inhabitants of the barangay containing the
following items of information: name, address, place and date of birth,
sex, civil status, citizenship, occupation, and such other items of
information as may be prescribed by law or ordinances.
Submit a report on the actual number of barangay residents as often as
may be required by the sangguniang barangay.
23. Please check the applicable responsibilities/duties/roles of your Barangay Treasurer
on the list:
Collect and issue official receipts for taxes, fees, contributions, monies,
materials, and all other resources accruing to the barangay treasury and
deposit the same in the account of the barangay.
Disburse funds in accordance with the financial procedures provided in
Rep. Act No. 7160.
93
Submit to the punong barangay a statement covering the actual and
estimates of income and expenditures for the preceding and ensuing
calendar years, respectively, subject to the provisions of Rep. Act No.
7160.
Render a written accounting report of all barangay funds and property
under his custody at the end of each calendar year, and ensure that such
report shall be made available to the members of the barangay assembly
and other government agencies concerned.
24. Do you dispose valueless records under your custody?
>>Valueless records—Include all record materials that reached their prescribed
retention periods and usefulness to the agency or the government ads a whole (DECS
Order No. 13-A, 1988).
Yes No
* If yes, who appraises, examines and recommends the method of disposal
of the records of the barangay? Please state his name and position (job
title) * If yes, how?
Burning Shredding
Selling Others:____________________
* Do you submit reports on the disposal of valueless records to the NAP?
Yes No
25. When disposing records, who serves as witnesses to the disposal process? (Please
check all the possible answers)
Brgy. Officers
Brgy. Captain
Records Officer
Archivist
Representative/s of the NAP
Commission on Audit (COA) representative/s
94
Others:______________________________
26. Do you conduct public biddings for the disposal of valueless records?
Yes No
* If yes, how often?_________________________
* Do you give a copy of the contract to the NAP?
Yes No
27. Do you provide a certificate of disposal upon the delivery of the disposable records to
paper mills, warehouse of the winning bidder?
Yes No
* If yes, what do you include in the certificate? (Please check all the possible
answers)
Nature of records
Manner of disposal
Place of disposal
Date of disposal
Approximate volume (in cubic meters)
Weight
28. Do you submit a report on the disposal of valueless records to the NAP?
Yes No
29. Where do you remit the sale of disposals of valueless records?
National Funds
Local Government Fund/ Barangay’s Funds
Others:_____________________________
30. Do you have File Breaks (“the termination of filing activity for a particular file at a
pre-determined time, or after the lapse of a specific event and beginning of a new file
period”, DECS Order No. 13-A, 1988).
Yes No
* If yes, when?_________________________
31. Do you have a Records Management Program?
95
Yes No
* If yes, please provide a copy.
32. Do you have a Records Management Improvement Committee?
Yes No
* If yes, please provide a list of the members of the committee
33. Do you have a set of standards and criteria for the maximum utilization of filing
equipment and floor space for maintaining and servicing files?
Yes No
34. Do you have a Records Management Operations Manual?
Yes No
* If yes, please provide a copy
35. Do you have a Production Control Program?
Yes No
* If yes, please provide a copy.
36. Do you have a centralized receiving and releasing unit of all communications of your
records and transactions?
Yes No
37. Do you have a File Classification Guide/Scheme?
Yes No
* If yes, please provide a copy.
38. Do you have a Retention Code (“a numeric symbol by which a file material may be
retained or disposed of”, DECS Order No. 13-B, 1988) for each record before you file it?
Yes No
39. Do you separate confidential records from the general files and keep it in secured file
containers?
Yes No
40. Do you have records storage/ mini archives of non-current records?
Yes No
96
__________________________ _Thank You__________________________________
Sources:DECS Order No. 13-A, S. 1988 - Guidelines on the Decentralized Disposal of Valueless Records in Government Agencies. Retrieved December 4, 2011 from the World Wide Web: http://lgrc.dilg10.org/v2/KP/Gov/Records/RAMPAnnexes.pdf
DECS Order No. 13-B, S. 1988 - Rules and Regulations Governing the Coordination of Records Management and Archives Function. Retrieved December 4, 2011 from the World Wide Web: http://lgrc.dilg10.org/v2/KP/Gov/Records/RAMPAnnexes.pdf
Republic Act No. 7160. (1991) An act providing for a local government code of 1991. Retrieved December 1, 2010 from The LAWPHiL Project: http://www.lawphil.net/statutes/repacts/ra1991/ra_7160_1991.html
Republic Act No. 9470. (2007) An act to strengthen the system of management and administration of archival records, establishing for the purpose the National Archives of the Philippines, and for other purposes. Retrieved December 1, 2010 from the World Wide Web: http :// www . senate . gov . ph / republic _ acts / ra %209470. pdf
Republic Act No. 9470 Implementing Rules and Regulations (2008), O.G. vol. 104 (no.9), p.1458-1482. Retrieved July 19, 2011 from Global Legal Information Network: http://www.glin.gov/view.action?glinID=225283