Atty. Julius Gregory Delgado
IBP NATIONAL LEGAL AID SUMMIT
From 18-20 March 2022, the Province of Bohol will host the Integrated Bar of the Philippines (IBP) National Legal Aid Summit. It will be attended by the top officials of the IBP, the Presidents from different local IBP Chapters and their respective Legal Aid Clerks. With a theme “Beyond Traditional Legal Aid: Upholding and Amplifying the Relevance of Legal Aid in the New Normal”, this is one of the first activities of the aggrupation of lawyers in the country since the start of the pandemic. The aim of the Summit is to strengthen the Legal Aid Programs of the different chapters in order to cater the most vulnerable members of our society.
IBP National is currently led by a lawyer from Bukidnon, Atty. Burt M. Estrada, who is a member of an Indigenous Cultural Community. Completing the Board of Governors who are currently present are: 1) Executive Vice President Antonio C. Pido, also Governor for Eastern Visayas; 2) Atty. Lucky M. Damasen, Governor for Northern Luzon; 3) Atty. Peter Paul Maglalang, Governor for Central Luzon; 4) Atty. Michael Atanante, Governor for Greater Manila; 5) Atty. Jose A. Atibagos II, Governor for Bicolandia; and 6) Atty. Tomas E. Junco, Jr., Governor for Western Visayas.
The hands are full for the IBP-Bohol Chapter led by its President, Atty. Licelle Zamora, Chairman of its Legal Aid Committee, Atty. John Jeric Lim, and its Legal Aid Clerk, Ms. Princess Pumatong, as they spearhead the local organizing committee welcoming more than 200 participants, including guests from the American Bar Association. Aside from the main conference on 19 March 2022, wherein lectures will be delivered, the delegates will do a Legal Aid Outreach in Loboc, Bohol the day after.
For the part of the Chapter, it has a long-time program called LAELEP or Legal Assistance for Effective Law Enforcement Program, which assists police officers facing charges in the lawful performance of their duties. It is now exploring the possibility of asking the Provincial Local Government for assistance in its Legal Aid Program since the Commission on Audit has reportedly cleared and given go signal for IBP Chapters to receive aid or financial assistance from LGUs for Legal Aid in order to make justice accessible to the most vulnerable sector of our society. As the adage goes, “Those who have less in life should have more in law.”