Capitol launches program to ensure peace, order, and welfare
By Mary Joy Cavañas
To ensure and strengthen the province’s welfare, the Iloilo Provincial Government launched its Executive Order No. 111 Series of 2025 during the Provincial Peace and Order Council (PPOC) Meeting at Hotel Del Rio in Molo District last December 23, 2025.
Under EO 111, the province established the Provincial Community Defense Action for MoRProGRes Iloilo, which is the “Kapayapaan, Kaayusan, at Katatagan Tungo sa Kaunlaran ng Bagong Pilipinas” or simply called 4K for MoRProGRes.
The 4K for MoRProGRes program — spearheaded by Governor Arthur Defensor Jr. — is an initiative designed for an intensified, integrated, and collaborative community action, aiming to promote enhanced, coordinated community efforts to protect the public’s welfare and local government units (LGUs) from both internal and external threats.
This initiative also adopts the Urgent Development Mode which covers implementation of projects for peace, order, and resilience as well as the funding of these programs in the province’s annual and supplemental budget.
The 4K for MoRProGRes also included the formation of the Provincial Community Defense Cluster, that will create policies, programs, and actions in the community defense area.
“We are doing that because this is an approach of addressing the problems that we are facing right now,” Defensor said during an interview.
He cited internal threats faced not only by the province but across the country such as man-made disasters, typhoons, earthquakes, pandemic, political and social disorders, and other emergency situations including crisis situations arising from environmental (climate change), social and health (pandemic, malnutrition, educational problems), and economic conditions. He also noted external threats in terms of foreign invaders and in national sovereignty, which he also defined as a constant happening across the globe.
Through this developmental approach, the provincial government also distributed funds to various beneficiaries in the community including to schools from various LGUs, to address educational concerns, particularly the lack of classrooms.
Defensor cited that the province distributed a total of ₱125 million amount of checks under the special education fund (SEF), to different school beneficiaries across various municipalities to address the lack of classrooms, particularly the ones having makeshift classrooms.
He noted that 1,165 schools needed assistance for classroom projects, while 468 of the total number have makeshift classrooms.
Defensor also provided funds for the police and army to address peace and order across the province, including procurement and distribution of service vehicles, and for operational expenses for the police and army, including the Iloilo Provincial Police Office (IPPO), Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) – Iloilo, Iloilo Provincial Police Office (IPPO), and Philippine Army. The province also turned over funds to different LGUs for the implementation of their respective disaster, risk reduction and management (DRRM) projects.
