ILOILO City – The Mandanas ruling is favorable to local government units (LGUs) because they will get bigger funds. But this also comes with bigger responsibilities, according to Atty. Ade Santillan Fajardo, the former national president of the Integrated Bar of the Philippines (IBP).
The Mandanas ruling of the Supreme Court transfers or devolves the delivery of basic services to LGUs. It gives them a just share on all national taxes collected and not only from the Bureau of Internal Revenue effective 2022.
In the online program “Giya Kang Banwa”, Fajardo explained that once the functions of national government agencies are devolved, LGUs will have to do more.
In health services, for example, the hiring of healthcare workers and management of local hospitals will now become the LGUs’ responsibility, he said.
Fajardo, however, raised a concern. Are the additional funds LGUs would be getting enough for them to perform the national government’s devolved functions?
“Ang additional infusion nga dya by extending the IRA (Internal Revenue Allotment) to become now the NTA (National Tax Allocation), pira ka bilyon ang itugro sa kabug-osan kang budget nga dya? Halimbawa, P500 billion lang ra pero ang actual cost kang devolution or decentralization basi ang gastuson mo ka ra dyan P1 trillion. Sa kabug-san, makita mo, ay, daw lain daw pirdi man gihapon ang local government,” said Fajardo.
This may be part of the birth pains of the new system and this may affect the economy, he said, and pointed out the problem on inefficiency in public spending by LGUs.
“Because of that low efficiency in public spending, duro nga kwarta nga wara ginagastos kang LGU nga indi kamaan mag gastos, indi kamaan kon paano mag-release. Duro man tuod sulod nga kwarta pero basi mabukot ang kwarta hay waay ti programa,” Fajardo said.
Money not spent will results to economic slowdown, he said.
“Hay ti waay ikaw ga-create ka jobs, waay ikaw ga-release ka pundo for public spending, wara ti demand. Ang spending amo ra ang nagapa sipa kang ekonomiya, kung ang tawo naga gastos. Ti kon indi ma-release ka mga LGUs, waay kamaan kon ano himuon, ang matabo supot ang kwarta, waay nagapitik ang ekonomiya,” Fajardo added.
In July 2018, the Supreme Court ruled in favor of the petitions filed separately by Gov. Hermilando Mandanas of Batangas and the late Rep. Enrique Garcia Jr. of Bataan questioning the computation of the IRA of LGUs.
In its decision, the high court expanded the source of IRA should include other national taxes such as customs duties. The IRA must be computed based on all national taxes, and not just from National Internal Revenue Taxes (NIRT).
It further states that the NIRT as provided in Section 284 of the Local Government Code contravened the express provision in Section 6, Article X of the 1987 Constitution.
“It interpreted the provisions of the Local Government Code 1991 which says ang prinsipyo naton sa Pilipinas dapat i-implementar ang gintawag principle of local autonomy, meaning ang aton mga LGUs dapat ligwa sa pagpadalagan sang anda nga mga banwa kag mga probinsya. Ti paano mo ra mahimo kon imol? Wara abi kwarta nga inughulag ang aton local governments kay ti man-an ta man nga ang basic sources kang income kang sang ka LGU RPT (real property tax), business taxes/permits. Tama ka gamay nga source kang income,” Fajardo explained.
Autonomy, Fajardo added, also means decentralization or devolution such as of basic services to the LGUs. To undertake these activities, there is a need for infusion of more money from the national government.
President Rodrigo Duterte’s Executive Order No. 138 -2021 provides guidelines on how to implement the Mandanas ruling this year. The order mainly directs national government agencies to fully transfer the task for delivering basic services to LGUs by 2024.
“Election na sa Mayo. Man-an ayhan kang aton bag-o nga mga opsiyales — even the old ones if they get re-elected? Na-orient ron ayhan sanda ka dya sa aton sitwasyon nga may windfall pero tama ka bahul ang responsibilidad?” Fajardo asked./PN
