ANGELES CITY — The administration of Mayor Carmelo “Pogi” Lazatin, Jr. has been a legacy of social service excellence, as another accolade adds to its growing list of recognition with the recent Panata Ko Sa Bayan: Gawad Serbisyong Matapat awarded by the Department of Social Welfare and Development.
The said recognition highlights the city government’s unwavering commitment to provide high-quality social services and exemplary contributions to the community.
Mayor Lazatin attributed the award to the collective efforts of the entire city government, expressing his gratitude to DSWD and the retired City Social Welfare and Development Officer, Edna Duaso.
“This recognition is a testament to our commitment to prioritize the welfare of every Angeleño. Gaya po ng pangako natin, no one will be left behind.” Lazatin said. “My heartfelt thanks to the DSWD for this honor and to Ms. Edna Duaso for her unwavering dedication during her years of service.”
The award, officially conferred on December 6, 2024, at the Subic Bay Travelers Hotel and Event Center in Zambales, is part of DSWD’s initiative to honor outstanding Local Government Units (LGUs) that excel in delivering social protection programs and services.
The recognition serves as a testament to Angeles City’s dedication to improve the lives of its citizens, particularly through programs assessed under the Service Delivery Capacity Assessment criteria.
It was during the administration of Mayor Lazatin that the regular house-to-house distribution of Vitamins and financial assistance to senior citizens, solo parents, Person with Disabilities, and transport group started.
Mayor Lazatin also brainchild the plastic-to-rice exchange program to combat hunger and malnutrition, which is being supervised by his Chief Adviser IC Calaguas and Executive Assistant IV Reina Manuel.
To date, 4,099,976 kilos of plastic were exchanged to rice.
In addition, to complement his zero malnutrition program, Mayor Lazatin initiated the ‘pusong mamon’ malunggay buns to monitor malnourished kids. At the time of writing, the house-to-house nutrition campaign has reduced the city’s malnutrition rate from 1,500 families in 2021 to 617 in 2022, and 563 in 2023.
The rescue of street children and families, and the rescue and free treatment of mentally-challenged individuals has also been started during Lazatin administration.
The 70 Day Care centers, including teachers and students were all taken cared of — improving its facilities, raising the honoraria of teachers, and providing school supplies and gears to the students.
The Aeta tribe in Barangay Sapangbato were also being given kabuhayan assistance. Additionally, among the 31 stewards serving as caretakers of the Angeles City Watershed are members of the Aeta tribe from Sitio Babo, Target, and Bliss who are receiving ₱3,000 monthly honoraria from the city government for the after-care monitoring of the seedlings being planted.
The city government also launched the free caskets to indigent families who will lost a loved one, in order to ease the burden of their families, even providing burial assistance.
Among the recognition received under the administration of Mayor Lazatin are the Walang Gutom Awards (2024), where Angeles City was a National Finalist for its innovative “Walang Plastikan” program, and the Gawad Makabata Award, received in both 2023 and 2022.
The city was also granted the Seal of Child-Friendly Local Governance in 2022.
On a personal level, Mayor Lazatin was recognized with the Gawad Parangal Award in 2024 as the Most Outstanding Local Chief Executive of the Philippines in the Highly-Urbanized City Category, while in 2019, he was honored as a Philippine Icon in the service of Solo Parents.
