IT-BPO firms on CICT abolition: Why no consultation?

Several IT-BPO associations decried Malacañang's failure to consult them prior to issuing a "surprising" directive restructuring the Commission on Information and Communications Technology (CICT), one of the industry's staunchest supporters. In a statement issued on Friday, the IT-BPO groups said a consultation with key stakeholders of this burgeoning industry should've been done before issuing Executive Order (EO) No. 47, which sought to reorganize the CICT and put it under the stewardship of the Department of Science and Technology (DOST). These groups include the Business Processing Assocation of the Philippines (BPAP), the Animation Council of the Philippines Inc., the Contact Center Association of the Philippines, the Gaming Development Association of the Philippines, the Health Information Management Outsourcing Association of the Philippines and the Philippine Software Industry of the Association. "Unless we strengthen our Public-Private Partnership with the government, we will have great difficulty achieving our goal of generating hundreds of thousands of new jobs in the next few years," the groups stressed. President Benigno Aquino's EO 47, released on June 30, ordered the transfer of the CICT to the DOST and its subsequent renaming into the ICT Office, to be headed by an executive director with the rank of Undersecretary. BPAP said it was surprised why Ivan Uy, then the chairman of the CICT, was not appointed as the ICTO executive director, despite being "very effective as an advocate of [the] industry." Many industry groups were also shocked by the pronouncement, especially since Aquino had appointed a new CICT commissioner only two days before abolishing the position. Some have speculated that the downgrade would adversely affect the entire BPO industry and could cost the country some 800,000 jobs, given the decreased focus on what is dubbed as a sunshine industry. Industry support DOST Sec. Mario Montejo, however, quelled the fears of the industry, saying that the move does not mean that the government will de-prioritize ICT development. “We believe DOST has the mandate and the knowledge resources to raise the number of BPO workforce in a significant way", Montejo said in a statement. In a meeting with leaders of the BPAP on Tuesday, Montejo assured stakeholders that the transfer would result in a "leaner, meaner planning and management" of government ICT resources for further industry growth. In a separate statement, Montejo said the agency will undertake a survey of selected towns in the country that will complement the next-wave cities program that has been pushed by the now-defunct CICT for the past few years. “We want to help diversify the services that the BPO industry currently provides from voice to non-voice services, which offer attractive compensation package", Montejo said. Adjacent towns to next-wave cities are the initial target of the DOST, Montejo said, as well as towns with more advanced governance systems. With this plan, DOST spokesman Raymund Liboro said the agency is essentially working to bring technologies and jobs to the provinces, part of DOST's countryside industrial development proram. “Hopefully, we can contribute to reverse migration from urban centers to rural areas", Liboro added. Welcome move BPAP, for its part, welcomed Montejo's expression of commitment to the industry, but urged the DOST to further clarify its plans for the industry. "We encourage him to involve individuals with deep experience with our industry in the leadership of the ICTO, including those from CICT," BPAP said. The group said that despite its support for the ICTO, it will still continue to push for the creation of a Department of ICT (DICT), since the ICT sector "merits even greater focus from the government." "We believe that further elevating the government’s prioritization of the ICT sector through the creation of a DICT will increase the ability of ICT to ensure the success not just of the IT-BPO industry, but of the entire nation," it added. — TJD, GMA News