Liyab,
the
vernacular
for
flame;
the
name
for
this
party
of
four
who
are
ablaze
with

the
passion
to
serve
Baliklaya
as
your
Top
4
this
coming
school
year.



We’ve
heard
it
all
before—
the
spark
that
set
a
nation
aflame,
the
one
little
candle
that

shines
through
the
dark.
Fires,
just
like
great
things,
don’t
start
from
nothing.
It

always
takes
that
one
small
spark
to
start
an
inferno
and
in
the
process
create
heat

and
light,
and
Wowie
Catabijan,
Hans
Santos,
Arvy
Uy
and
JC
Young
aim
to
do
just

that,
four
individuals
aflame
with
the
passion
to
serve
YOU.



We
are
four
individuals
aflame
with
the
passion
to
serve
you,
but
who
have
never

been
there
to
create
names
for
ourselves.
Truth
be
told,
we'd
rather
stick
to
the
gray

shadows
of
the
backstage
and
just
smile
fondly
as
Baliklaya
receives
recognition
for

her
work,
because
it
is
our
aim
to
create
a
name
for
the
organization
as
a
whole.



Baliklaya's
fire
deserves
to
shine
as
effervescently
as
the
bright
orange
hue

representative
of
the
inmates
it
aims
to
help,
so
this
year,
allow
us
to
spark
that
fire

for
her.




Four
names.
One
fire.
One
blaze.
Liyab.

 


Ruth
Valorie
“Wowie”
Catabijan:
President




 In
the
past
3
years
of
my
college
life,
Baliklaya
has
been
a
great
part
of
the
whole

package
that
college
has
presented
before
me.
As
I
near
my
final
year
in
college
and
in

the
 organization,
 I
 want
 to
 step
 up
 and
 take
 things
 further
 with
 my
 participation
 in

Baliklaya
by
running
as
your
next
Baliklaya
President.




 My
plans
for
the
organization
revolve
around
this
particular
phrase
that
has
been

going
on
my
mind
these
past
few
days:



“Work
to
empower
the
members
and
make
the
operations
of
the
organization
more

sustainable.
Think
about
accreditation
later.”




 Baliklaya
 will
 be
 celebrating
 its
 3rd
 year
 as
 an
 independent
 organization
 next

school
year.
After
going
through
2
years
on
its
own
feet,
there
are
still
some
concerns

regarding
its
sustainability
as
an
organization.




These
 concerns
 are
 what
 I
 aim
 to
 address
 and
 overcome
 given
 a
 year
 of

handling
 projects
 and
 a
 team
 of
 people
 dedicated
 to
 the
 cause
 of
 rehabilitating

prisoners
who
want
to
make
a
difference
in
their
lives
while
still
inside
prison.




The
following
are
the
concrete
actions
I
plan
to
carry
out
if
elected
as
president

for
the
coming
school
year:



Professionalizing
EB
and
ExeCom
Meetings

• Baliklaya
 has
 the
 disadvantage
 of
 not
 having
 an
 org
 room
 to
 conduct
 its
 meetings,

interviews,
etc.

• Most
 of
 the
 time,
 EB
 meetings
 are
 held
 without
 having
 the
 complete
 set
 of
 officers

deciding
on
matters
and
discussing
projects

• EB
 officers
 tend
 to
 get
 distracted
 easily
 when
 meetings
 are
 held
 in
 “not
 so
 private”

venues

• My
proposed
solution
for
this
is
to
communicate
to
the
officers
the
importance
of
taking

on
a
more
professional
approach
when
conducting
our
regular
meetings
to
effectively

decide
on
matters
and
follow
agenda

• Also,
with
the
help
of
the
Logistics
Director,
I
would
like
to
reserve
rooms/venues
that

will
 make
 meetings
 more
 private
 and
 encourage
 officers
 to
 go
 through
 agenda
 in
 a

more
systematic
way



Centralizing
Information
Dissemination

• Baliklaya
 has
 numerous
 yahoo
 groups
 wherein
 all
 our
 information,
 updates
 and

important
documents
pass
through.

 


• Having
these
many
accounts
can
get
confusing
at
times
with
members
and
officers
not

knowing
which
accounts
to
use
or
turn
to
for
necessary
documents.

• With
the
help
of
the
Human
Resources
Department,
the
creation
of
a
more
centralized

information
 dissemination
 system
 can
 help
 communication
 of
 important
 information

flow
more
effectively



Establish
A
Stronger
Relationship
With
Selected
Prison
Communities

• The
 Bureau
 of
 Corrections
 has
 been
 the
 partner
 of
 Baliklaya
 in
 all
 of
 its
 Bilibid‐based

projects.

• Problems
 still
 arise
 in
 carrying
 out
 these
 projects
 because
 of
 miscommunications

between
Baliklaya,
BuCor
and
other
personnel
in
Bilibid.

• Long
before
the
school
year
starts,
I
plan
to
hold
a
meeting
with
the
Baliklaya
officers

and
BuCor
to
straighten
things
out
about
the
processes
of
hosting
projects
and
events

directly
related
to
the
inmates.
This
will
be
followed
up
by
consultations
and
called
for

meetings
with
said
officers
in
order
to
continue
the
evolving
relationship
between
the

two
partners

• Officers
directly
concerned
with
this
action,
aside
from
the
President,
are
the
VP
for
SCI,

Logistics
Director,
Secretary‐General
and
the
Executive
Vice
President.



Investing
On
A
Transport
Vehicle
or
Scheme
for
Out­of­school
Projects

• Transportation
has
always
been
a
big
problem
thrown
around
in
the
organization

• A
 big
 portion
 of
 our
 funds
 for
 one
 project
 go
 to
 the
 rental
 of
 jeepneys
 that
 sometimes

pose
 problems
 for
 the
 members
 because
 of
 various
 reasons
 (ex.
 Breakdowns,

expensive,
uncomfortable)

• Investing
 on
 a
 good
 transport
 vehicle
 or
 transport
 scheme
 can
 be
 good
 for
 the

organization
in
the
long
run

• This
can
help
in
reducing
costs
for
the
organization,
increase
efficiency
in
out‐of‐school

projects
by
taking
out
the
previous
hassles
brought
to
us
by
past
transport
problems

• Officers
directly
involved
in
this
project
will
be
the
VP
for
Fundraising
and
Treasurer



Increasing
The
Number
of
Partner
Prison
Communities

• One
 problem
 that
 Baliklaya
 faces
 with
 its
 prison‐based
 projects
 is
 the
 distance
 of
 the

venue
from
Ateneo.

• Many
 students
 are
 discouraged
 from
 joining
 such
 activities
 because
 of
 this
 especially

Freshmen
and
Sophomore
members
who
have
very
hectic
schedules

• Increasing
the
number
of
partner
prison
communities
can
aid
in
getting
more
members

to
join
prison‐based
activities
and
actually
interact
with
the
inmates
if
the
venues
for

them
were
closer.

 


• This
can
also
increase
the
no.
of
visits
within
the
year
that
would
give
more
options
for

members
to
join
in.

• Departments
 directly
 involved
 would
 be
 the
 Office
 of
 the
 President,
 Advocacy

Department
and
the
SCI
Department



Effective
Project
Management

• The
success
of
Baliklaya
as
an
organization
relies
heavily
on
the
success
of
its
projects

collectively

• Effective
 project
 management
 should
 be
 carried
 out
 in
 order
 for
 the
 operations
 of
 the

organization
to
flow
smoothly
through
the
help
of
the
officers
and
its
members

• My
proposal
for
this
is
to
reevaluate
the
Project
Management
Seminar,
Project
Manager

Kits
and
Selection
Process
for
Project
Managers
and
Core
Team
Members
with
the
help

of
all
the
officers

• Through
 this
 evaluation,
 we
 can
 revise
 these
 and
 find
 ways
 to
 make
 the
 preparation,

execution
and
evaluation
of
projects
more
effective



“Branding”
Baliklaya

• Baliklaya
has
long
been
associated
with
Ateneo
Lex
as
its
former
flagship
program

• Coming
 from
 such
 a
 relationship
 with
 the
 other
 organization,
 Baliklaya
 still
 has
 issues

about
its
independence
and
how
it
should
be
marketed
to
the
Ateneo
community

• Building
 and
 clearly
 defining
 the
 identity
 of
 the
 organization
 is
 a
 big
 step
 in
 making

Baliklaya’s
 operations
 closer
 to
 its
 goals.
 Having
 such
 an
 identity
 that
 members
 can

identify
 with
 and
 address
 to
 can
 also
 be
 treated
 as
 a
 push
 for
 them
 towards

concretizing
 their
 ideas
 for
 the
 improvement
 of
 the
 organization
 in
 supporting
 its

cause

• The
“branding”
of
Baliklaya
,
which
would
be
in
line
with
its
mission
and
vision,
will
be

something
 that
 I
 want
 to
 discuss
 with
 and
 define
 through
 the
 help
 of
 all
 the
 EB

members

• The
 image
 or
 “branding”
 of
 Baliklaya
 is
 what
 I
 want
 to
 be
 carried
 out
 in
 the
 coming

years
to
help
future
members
and
officers
identify
with
the
cause
and
operations
of
the

organization



With
all
of
these
in
mind,
I
plan
to
work
on
forming
a
Baliklaya
that
can
stand
on
its

own
 feet
 as
 an
 independent
 organization
 that
 carries
 out
 sustainable
 operations
 in

advocating
 our
 cause
 of
 and
 providing
 services
 in
 aiding
 inmates
 in
 their
 efforts
 to

rehabilitation.






 




Hans
Cedric
Santos:
Executive
Vice
President

For
the
past
few
years,
the
big
question
with
Baliklaya
has
always
been:
Who
will

carry
 on
 the
 work
 when
 the
 time
 comes?
 Sustainability,
 all
 questions
 in
 the
 past
 2

years
have
pointed
either
directly
or
indirectly
at
that
shadow
issue.




How
do
we
make
the
freshmen
and
sophomores
more
active?
How
much
do
we

break
 away
 from
 Ateneo
 LEX?
 How
 do
 we
 form
 our
 members
 to
 really
 feel
 the

advocacy?
 How
 do
 we
 build
 a
 better
 (read:
 more
 consistent)
 working
 relationship

with
the
Bureau
of
Corrections
and
New
Bilibid
Prison?




How
 do
 we
 build
 a
 legacy
 for
 Baliklaya
 that
 will
 last
 beyond
 our
 time
 in
 the

organization?



There
are
so
many
questions
with
so
many
possible
answers.
To
these
questions,

I
humbly
give
a
few
of
my
answers
to
see
where
a
vote
for
me
can
take
Baliklaya
in

the
coming
year.




Earlier
preparation
for
projects
under
the
guidance
of
the
Executive
Board



Preparation
 for
 projects
 should
 be
 started
 two
 months
 at
 the
 latest
 before
 the

planned
execution.
This
will
allow
project
managers
to
work
on
their
projects
at
their

own
pace
without
having
to
rush
preparations.




The
 EB
 will
 begin
 meeting
 with
 the
 project
 team
 at
 this
 time
 to
 discuss
 their

vision
 for
 their
 project,
 suggest
 courses
 of
 action
 and
 recommend
 members
 to
 pull

into
 the
 project.
 As
 much
 as
 possible,
 the
 project
 team
 will
 be
 given
 leeway
 in

handling
their
projects
to
develop
their
own
leadership
skills
within
the
organization.






 


Easing
in
the
membership
into
the
advocacy



New
 members,
 especially
 from
 the
 younger
 batches,
 should
 be
 eased
 into
 the

advocacy
 by
 developing
 a
 series
 of
 projects
 that
 are
 more
 accessible
 avenues
 of

entering
 the
 cause
 but
 have
 their
 own
 impact
 nonetheless.
 This
 would
 include

Ateneo‐based
 projects
 that
 spread
 the
 advocacy
 and
 facilitated
 learning
 about
 the

Philippine
justice
system
and
the
context
of
the
inmates.




Contacts
sharing
among
the
departments



Freely
 exchanging
 members
 among
 the
 departments
 would
 increase

membership
participation
in
the
various
projects
of
the
organization
as
well
as
build

a
 foundation
 of
 knowing
 the
 organization
 which
 will
 be
 useful
 in
 developing

leadership
among
the
members
later
on.




As
 said
 earlier,
 these
 are
 only
 a
 few
 answers
 to
 the
 greater
 question
 of

Sustainability
that
Baliklaya
faces
today.
I
admit
I
don’t
have
all
the
answers
but
that

only
 makes
 me
 all
 the
 more
 dedicated
 to
 listening
 to
 your
 opinions
 and
 finding
 our

answers
together.




Vote
Hans
Santos
for
Executive
Vice
President
and
together
let’s
build
our
legacy

for
the
Baliklaya
of
the
future.

 


Joanna
Clarisse
“JC”
Young:
Finance
Officer



Because
time
is
money
and



 money
is
something
this
office
should
know
about,



 
 let’s
cut
straight
to
the
chase
and
do
away
with
niceties.



If
elected
as
your
Baliklaya
Treasurer,
this
will
be
my
PACT

to
you
this
SY
2011­2012.



Proper
Resource
Generation
and
Allocation

Hand
in
hand
with
the
VP
for
Fundraising,
the
Finance
Office
will
definitely
be
sure
to

safeguard
 the
 precious
 money
 Fundraising
 Department
 earns
 for
 the
 organization.
 I

shall



 Ensure
 that
 the
 funds
 go
 into
 the
 appropriate
 accounts
 and
 that
 they
 shall
 only
 be

utilized
 for
 feasible
 fundraising
 projects,
 as
 well
 as
 SCI/Advocacy
 projects
 that
 really

need
funding.



 Impose
 upon
 the
 project
 managers
 a
 request
 system,
 in
 which
 they
 shall
 detail
 the

reasons
 for
 which
 they
 need
 funds,
 the
 approximate
 amount,
 and
 very
 specific
 and

reasonable
 projected
 expenses
 at
 least
 two
 (2)
 weeks
 before
 the
 said
 event
 to
 have

systematization,
and
to
have
enough
time
to
go
through
their
requests
and
decide
on

their
soundness.



 Impose
a
no‐disbursement
policy
without
filling
out
the
request
form
by
the
prescribed

date.
This
means
that
the
unauthorized
money
projects
managers
“abono”
for,
shall
be

borne
at
the
individual’s
own
risk
for
failure
to
adhere
to
Treasury
regulations,
even
if

the
 generosity
 of
 the
 PM,
 VP
 or
 any
 concerned
 individual
 is
 to
 be
 commended
 in

shelling
out
the
needed
money
for
the
project
from
their
own
pockets.



 Form
 a
 Budgeting
 Committee
 composed
 of
 the
 Treasurer,
 her
 AVP/s,
 the
 VP
 for

Fundraising,
and
several
other
members
of
the
Executive
Committee
to
appropriately

allocate
 all
 pre‐existing
 funds
 between
 the
 departments,
 projected
 expenses,
 savings,

and
etc.
at
the
start
of
the
year.
This
is
to
maintain
or
better
yet,
improve
the
current

state
 of
 our
 coffers,
 and
 make
 sure
 that
 we
 have
 a
 general
 guideline
 to
 guide
 us

throughout
the
school
year.

Accountability

 In
line
with
my
request
system,
I
hope
to
make
people
more
accountable
for
the
money

that
 they
 shall
 ask
 from
 the
 Treasury
 Department,
 especially
 for
 non‐fundraising

projects.
 They
 need
 to
 be
 made
 aware
 of
 the
 fact
 that
 Baliklaya
 is
 a
 start‐up

organization,
and
while
she’s
trying
her
best
to
keep
her
funds
relatively
healthy,
she

 


needs
 all
 the
 help
 she
 can
 get
 from
 her
 responsible,
 cautious
 and
 practical
 members.


They
 need
 to
 be
 accountable
 for
 the
 money
 even
 before
 they
 attempt
 to
 request
 the

said
 funds
 from
 the
 Finance
 Office,
 and
 more
 so
 after
 they
 spend
 it
 for
 their
 various

projects.




 I
likewise
hope
to
make
the
members
of
the
Executive
Committee
especially
aware
that

their
 dedication
 to
 the
 organization
 does
 not
 only
 fall
 within
 the
 confines
 of
 their

respective
 departments,
 but
 also
 remember
 that
 the
 Treasury
 Department
 is
 one

sector
that
keeps
things
running,
and
as
such,
deserves
as
much
taking
care
of
as
you

would
any
other
project.


Continuous
Auditing

 More
 to
 do
 with
 post‐project
 finances,
 I
 plan
 to
 establish
 an
 Auditing
 System
 through

which
 just
 like
 any
 real‐life
 company,
 the
 project
 managers’
 expense
 accounts
 and

summaries
 shall
 undergo
 thorough
 auditing,
 just
 to
 make
 sure
 that
 no
 funds
 were

mishandled
or
misappropriated.




 Receipts
and
other
supporting
documentation
detailing
where
and
how
the
funds
were

used
will
be
required
from
the
project
managers,
and
failure
to
submit
such
documents

to
the
Office
shall
be
met
with
a
demerit.



 This
 demerit
 shall
 be
 significant
 in
 determining
 the
 leniency
 of
 the
 Office
 in
 granting

project
funds
to
the
same
project
manager
in
the
future,
and
should
he
or
she
continue

to
 carelessly
 disregard
 its
 regulations,
 the
 Office
 shall
 likewise
 frown
 upon
 the

Department
 to
 which
 this
 project
 manager
 belongs
 to,
 and
 take
 this
 into
 account
 the

next
time
any
other
project
manager
from
the
same
Department
asks
for
funding.



 In
 other
 words,
 failure
 to
 submit
 proper
 documentation
 for
 auditing,
 failure
 to
 be

present
when
called
for
questioning
and
other
similar
matters
pertaining
to
auditing
a

project’s
expenses
shall
incur
a
demerit
on
possibly
both
the
project
manager
and
the

department
in
which
he
or
she
belongs
to,
severely
restraining
their
chances
of
getting

their
desired
budgeting
should
this
charade
continue.


Transparency

 Finally,
transparency
shall
be
effected
out
within
and
beyond
the
Finance
Office.
I
shall

make
sure
that
income
statements,
summaries
of
profits
and
losses,
and
other
financial

statements
shall
be
at
everyone’s
disposal,
even
for
the
regular
members.




 The
executive
board
and
executive
committee
on
the
other
hand
may
expect
a
regular

update
 regarding
 the
 state
 of
 Baliklaya’s
 coffers,
 just
 to
 keep
 everyone
 abreast
 of
 the

latest
financial
woes
or
joys.
For
transparency
to
occur,
there
is
likewise
the
need
for

organizing
 and
 filing
 away
 every
 single
 piece
 of
 documentation
 for
 easy
 referencing

and
 handling,
 thus
 all
 these
 files
 are
 to
 be
 kept
 a
 safe
 place
 for
 easy
 sorting,
 and
 for

easy
distribution
should
anyone
desire
it
.
 


Arvy
Brian
Uy:
Secretary­General



Platform

• Closed
room
venues
for
the
EB
meetings
for
more
focused
discussions

 In
 order
 to
 provide
 a
 more
 formal
 atmosphere
 during
 the
 EB

meetings,
a
closed
room
will
be
reserved
for
EB
meetings
whenever

possible.
The
aim
is
not
to
abolish
the
energetic
and
semi‐formal
feel

similar
 to
 that
 of
 the
 current
 EB
 meetings
 but
 to
 simply
 elicit
 more

focus
from
the
EB
members.



• Strict
implementation
of
meeting
rules
and
regulations

 Rules
promulgated
during
the
current
year
with
regard
to
EB
meeting

policies
 will
 be
 re‐examined
 to
 be
 more
 acceptable
 to
 everyone
 and

will
be
implemented
with
force.



• Digital
 audio
 recording
 of
 the
 EB
 meetings
 along
 with
 the
 type
 written

minutes
 (typewritten
 minutes
 are
 to
 be
 uploaded
 online
 while
 digital

minutes
will
be
available
upon
request)

 This
is
also
an
effort
to
break
down
the
walls
between
the
EB
and
the

members.
 Transparency
 we
 hope
 will
 allow
 the
 EB
 to
 me
 more

approachable
to
the
members
so
that
our
relationships
will
prosper.

• Improved
attendance
details
and
attendance
checking
system
via
log
sheet.



• Yes
Report
making
consultation
with
project
managers
after
every
project

(can
be
included
in
EB
meetings)

 This
 serves
 a
 twofold
 purpose.
 One
 is
 to
 systematically
 prepare
 the

YES
 report
 so
 that
 it
 will
 be
 ready
 before
 the
 deadline,
 allowing
 the

EB
 to
 prepare
 early
 for
 the
 report.
 The
 second
 is
 to
 help
 the

organization
 visualize
 what
 components
 it
 still
 needs
 to
 fulfill
 in

order
to
have
a
better
shot
at
accreditation.



• Baliklaya
newsletter
will
be
released
at
least
every
2
weeks
in
order
to
keep

the
members
updated
on
recent
events
and
activities.

 


Proposed
Improvements

• Improved
 coordination
 with
 the
 Advertising
 Committee
 for
 more
 efficient

promotional
activities
+
newsletter
layout

 The
 Advertising
 Committee
 is
 crucial
 to
 our
 on
 campus
 promotions.

As
 such,
 a
 tight
 coordination
 scheme
 with
 the
 department
 is
 being

pushed
 for
 in
 order
 to
 maximize
 our
 reach.
 The
 layout
 of
 the

Baliklaya
 newsletter
 will
 also
 be
 done
 in
 cooperation
 with
 the

Committee.



• Improved
 coordination
 with
 the
 Human
 Resources
 Department
 for

membership
participation
updates
+
active
membership
incentives

 Now
 more
 than
 ever,
 membership
 involvement
 is
 heavily
 needed.

Coordination
 with
 the
 HR
 department
 for
 member
 updates
 on

participation
and
member
incentives
hopes
to
further
bridge
the
gap

between
the
members
and
the
officers.



• Rotating
 member
 participation
 in
 selected
 EB
 meetings
 (not
 counted
 in

activities
attended)

 Members
 will
 be
 invited
 to
 EB
 meetings
 not
 just
 to
 observe
 but

participate
and
give
quality
input.
This
will
hopefully
serve
as
a
good

experience
 and
 a
 form
 of
 training
 for
 the
 members
 especially
 those

who
aspire
to
be
EB.



• Team
based
project
distribution
system.

 A
 shift
 from
 Project
 Manger
 based
 to
 Team
 based
 project‐making

system
where
the
members
are
encouraged
to
participate
more.



• Project
consultations
are
to
be
done
by
the
EB
in
order
to
guarantee
a
well

planned
and
executed
project.