Walking The Talk: The Local Community's Engagement Spectrum With The Local Government Unit Programs And Policies

This study focuses on the community engagement of residents towards implementing programs and policies of the local government unit in the province of Cotabato. The residents shared their experiences with the community engagement process, noting several benefits and challenges related to participation. A qualitative narratology approach was utilized to examine the participants' lived experiences. The study used a Saldañas method for an in-depth and systematic analysis of the participants' narratives. Purposive sampling was used to gather ten residents as the participants of this study, employing a bracketing method to gather fair and bias-free narratives during the interview. This study drew the following themes on the benefits of community involvement in government programs: People’s Necessity Access to Knowledge and Information, Collaboration and Cooperation, and Communication Availability. The key themes are also drawn on the challenges that delay the effectiveness of community participation, such as Lack of Proper Communication, Time Constraints and Financial Stability, and Lack of Interest and Political Partisanship. This study also highlights that community participation advances social cohesion and development through Effective and Responsible Leadership in Community Development with stakeholder involvement, Adherence to the Rule of Law and Fair Governance, Transparency, Accountability, and Community Inclusiveness. The findings revealed that community engagement is important in the local government unit as it allows them to be informed and heard about its programs and policies. In this case, communication significantly creates an engaged, inclusive, and empowered community by enhancing decision-making. This underscores that the development of the community through the program and policies of the local government units lies in the effort of the residents to participate. Thus, local leaders should consider a proper channel for information dissemination and key governance principles in promoting community engagement.