In the Philippines, every province, city, and municipality is required to have a Local School Board (LSB), which oversees the use of the Special Education Fund for public schools. Co-chaired by the local chief executive and the school superintendent, the LSB is responsible for setting annual budgets, supporting school facilities, and providing guidance on education-related concerns, ensuring that local governments play an active role in advancing basic education.
A best practice is for mayors not to simply leave planning to superintendents and limit their role to approving and signing proposals. As local chief executives, they should be fully engaged—well-informed, actively involved, and genuinely co-leading their respective Boards rather than being consulted only in passing.
The World Bank’s paper on Participatory Development: Myths and Dilemmas, defines participation as “the sum of the human transactions which take place voluntarily (within and across organizations) in a society aiming to achieve sustainable and equitable economic growth”. Excluding coercive and violent interactions, the definition implies transparency in the process of participation as well as accountability for its outcomes.
Local government leaders should understand this, among many other responsibilities. The following story from Synergeia Foundation, entitled “Education Governance Rewritten by the People” offers an excellent model of how it can be effectively put into practice.
Education Governance Rewritten By The People
I Change.
With that simple but disarming theme, the Department of Social Welfare and Development Chief challenged a room full of leaders to rethink leadership itself, not as something they define, but as something shaped, corrected, and ultimately transformed by the people they serve.
“The title didn’t say ‘we.’ It’s ‘I,’ so ‘ako’… kung paano ako nagbago,” Honorable Secretary Rex Gatchalian said, setting the tone for a speech that was as introspective as it was instructive.
“I remember noong mayor ako, I would also be sitting there…I would like to say na maraming marami akong natututunan joining this education summit over the years”.
He was among the most outstanding mayors mentored by the Synergeia Foundation, organizer of the 2026 Washington SyCip National Education Summit held at the Philippine International Convention Center.
From Certainty To Humility
Gatchalian traced his journey from Congress to City Hall, where he served as mayor of Valenzuela for nine years. Entering the role, he carried a strong sense of confidence, one that quickly proved misplaced. “I used to think, like most politicians, that I knew it all… I knew every single answer,” he admitted. “Doon ako nagkakamali.”
The wake-up call came when the city’s education performance sharply declined despite his expectations of continuity. “There must be something wrong,” he recalled. “And that’s when I realized that I didn’t know every single thing about governance.” Reflecting on that moment, he added: “Ang dami palang namamatay sa maling akala. And kamuntik akong mamatay nung first six months.”
Listening As Leadership
That realization pushed him toward a radically different approach: listening. Guided by mentors like Dr. Milwida M. Guevara of Synergeia Foundation, he engaged in months of consultations with stakeholders.
He recounted “So tinanong ko si Ma’am Nene, Ma’am, anong gagawin natin? Sabi niya, hindi rin niya alam. Sabi niya, ang nakakaalam niyan, yung mga tao mismo. Why don’t we talk to them, sabi niya. Why don’t we listen to them? And we talk to them.”
What followed was a six-month immersion in community voices. “We did six months’ worth of talking, listening, talking, and listening… sila ang nagsasalita.”
This process fundamentally reshaped his understanding of leadership. “I’d like to think that it’s the people who define your leadership style,” he said. “Not the other way around.” He also warned of a common pitfall among those in power: “When you are a local chief executive… your voice tends to be the loudest in the room. You tend to drown out everybody.”
His solution was simple but powerful: “Go in, introduce yourself, keep quiet, and listen.”
Putting People At The Center
Through this listening process, Gatchalian and his team developed “Education 360,” a holistic program that placed the child at the center of the education system. “Siya yung nasa gitna… umikot yung mundo namin sa kaniya,” he explained.
The initiative included feeding programs, literacy efforts, improved facilities, and values formation, but its strength lay in community ownership. Schools and stakeholders were invited to propose solutions themselves. “When people are part of the solution, pag kasama sila sa solusyon, they tend to work harder toward the same direction,” he said. “You don’t shove it down their throats; rather, you ask them.”
Many of the program’s innovations came directly from the ground. “Actually, all of those ideas came from them,” he emphasized.
Three Core Principles Of Leadership
From his experience, Gatchalian outlined three core principles: Acceptance, “Leaders… should accept that we don’t know everything. We don’t have a monopoly of the right answers.”; Listening, “Listen, listen, listen… the right answers come from the people themselves.” He added a practical insight: “When you open your mouth, everybody just keeps quiet… the trick is to keep quiet.”; Shared Ownership, “Kailangan bahagi sila ng solusyon… make people believe that they are part of the solution.”
Relentlessness In The Face Of Resistance
Even with strong ideas, Gatchalian acknowledged that resistance is inevitable, especially in government. “Palagi mong naririnig yung ‘imposible ho yan, mahirap ho yan, hindi ho yan puwede,’” he said.
But he emphasized that leadership requires persistence. “It’s your responsibility to make it happen… or else manlalamig yung mga tao.” He cited the DSWD’s “Walang Gutom Program” as an example of pushing through bureaucratic barriers. Initially dismissed as unworkable, the program eventually secured funding and is now scaling up nationwide.
“Roadblocks will always be there,” he said. “But you just have to be very, very relentless.”
Turning “Impossible” Into Reality
Gatchalian shared similar resistance during his time as mayor, particularly when launching education reforms. “Ang sagot lagi sa akin… ‘Mahirap ho yan. Imposible ho yan,’” he recalled.
But iteration and persistence paid off. Programs evolved, adding incentives, engaging college students, and addressing practical barriers like food access. “Bottomline, there will always be roadblocks,” he said. “And the role of leaders is to make things happen.”
He summed it up succinctly: “We don’t stop… we have to be relentless until we make the impossible, possible.”
Leadership That Outlives The Leader
For Gatchalian, true leadership is measured not by tenure, but by sustainability.
“The agents of change, hindi ikaw yun,” he said. “It’s your responsibility to find other people who will carry on the battle.” He emphasized the importance of building systems and empowering others to continue the work. “Our public life is finite… we have to make sure that the programs outlive us.”
A Leadership Defined By The People
In closing, Gatchalian returned to his central thesis: leadership is defined by the people.
“It’s the people that change the leader,” he said. “It’s the people that define the leadership style.” And for leaders navigating complexity and uncertainty, his advice remains grounded and clear: “Let them figure out what the problem is… because the right answers really come from them.”
In the end, his message was not just about governance, it was about transformation. “I came into City Hall thinking I knew everything,” he reflected. “But the most simple thing, I did not know how to solve.”
What followed was not just a turnaround in policy, but a redefinition of leadership itself, one shaped by humility, shared ownership, and the courage to change.
