THE DISCOURSE OF GOVERNANCE IN THE LINGUISTIC LANDSCAPE OF QUEZON CITY GOVERNMENT

Abstract

The study aims to analyze the discourse of governance in the tarpaulins and posters of the Quezon City government, which were posted and distributed on the identified public spaces. The researcher used the three-dimensional model (description, interpretation, and evaluation) of Critical Discourse Analysis designed by Norman Fairclough as a method for document analysis. The Rights-Based Approach in Governance formulated by the National College of Public Administration of the University of the Philippines-Diliman was used as a theoretical guide in analyzing the discourse of governance. It concludes that (1) human rights has influence in responding to the needs of the constituents and governance. (2) Since the English language is being used in most of the transactions and communications of the government, the city government used Filipino language and Taglish (Tagalog and English) to simplify and explain the importance and contents of newly enacted policies and created programs. (3) The issued Executive Order No. 335 on August 25, 1988 pursuant to Article XIV, Section VI in the 1987 Constitution of the Philippines, that intensifies the use of Filipino language in official transactions and communications in government offices was not following by government agencies. Instead, English language is being used in all the documents, while the language for face-to-face communication or materials distributing to the mass is Filipino. And lastly (4), language can create and close the gap between the government and its citizens. Keywords: language, linguistic landscape, discourse, governance, human rights