Joy Belmonte, mayor of Quezon City, has renewed her commitment to advance reforms aimed at strengthening transparency, accountability and good governance in her local government. As she enters her final term, she emphasized that trust from the public is built upon openness, fair processes and service-oriented leadership.
She announced plans to launch tools that allow residents to track city-projects — including an open data dashboard showing key infrastructure initiatives — as well as a mobile app where citizens can submit feedback, concerns and complaints directly to city hall.
Mayor Belmonte also reiterated a zero-tolerance stance on corruption: city hall officials found engaging in patronage, “fixers,” or illicit “lagay” payments will face full legal consequences. She told staff that even “strike one” offenses will not be ignored.
On service delivery, the local government continues to push for more digitized procedures — with dozens of online services now available — to reduce opportunities for graft and make access more convenient. Automation, she says, is “our greatest tool for good governance.”
Mayor Belmonte concluded by emphasising that the city’s resources and systems are meant to serve the people — “not the other way around” — and called on all municipal employees, barangay officials and residents to support a culture of openness and integrity.