Bayan Talk (literally, “People Talk”) aims to fill this governance vacuum by convening regular dialogues between government agencies or local government units, and the constituencies they serve, to promote understanding, greater government responsiveness, and the monitoring of government services and integrity through people’s organizations. Where the poor are not yet organized, Bayan Talk will also spur the formation of groups to dialogue with concerned state bodies.

The enhanced government-citizenry dialogues would also serve to address weaknesses of the bureaucracy in a number of critical areas.  Government systems and procedures are less efficient, less flexible and tend to be more on compliance with the rules rather than providing greater space in achieving results and productivity. In many state agencies and instrumentalities, public service delivery has become overly complex and highly susceptible to red tape, thus reducing the atmosphere for the culture of customer service to evolve.  The apparatuses for accountability seldom work and programs on anti-corruption fall short of expectation either because of the lack of political will or no serious implementation.  By harnessing both the leading personnel agency of the government and the collective eyes, ears and tongues of countless people’s groups, agencies and local government units (LGUs) can be pressed to be more attentive and responsive to the real needs and aspirations of citizens.

Through the stakeholders’ dialogue, a wealth of information and peoples’ expectations and aspirations shall be generated and documented which in turn can form the basis for a collective government action.  Invariably, these government actions shall be converted into government pieces of legislation, executive fiats and directives, agencies’ improved systems and procedures (e.g., Citizens’ Charter, generic charters) and other socio-economic packages, among others.