QUEZON City recently hosted the third Global Mayoral Forum, with the event receiving tremendous response and participation from mayors, governors, prefects and other local officials worldwide.
The two-day forum, an annual gathering of mayors and city leaders, was participated in by more than 100 local government officials from Belgium, Costa Rica, the Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Indonesia, Jordan, Lao PDR, Lebanon, Mali, Moldova, Morocco, Myanmar, Nepal, Senegal, Spain, Sweden and Uruguay
Quezon City Mayor Herbert Bautista during its launch said urban centers nationwide should be given fiscal assistance if they were to act as catch basin for informal settlers and other provincial migrants in Metro Manila.
Bautista said he proposed having a policy that would transfer part of a city’s internal-revenue allotment (IRA) to the cities or provinces that would host migrants. The amount of IRA transferred will depend on the number of people moved.
According to Bautista, some localities that serve as relocation sites for Metro Manila residents do not have sufficient facilities and budget to accommodate people.
Bautista said his proposal submitted to the Department of Budget and Management and the Department of Finance would have the transfer of a local government unit’s IRA to another in proportion to the number of locators being moved.
“For example, Quezon City would have 10,000 families, or 50,000 people, being moved to Rizal province, its equivalent IRA allotment will also be moved to Rizal. We are fine with losing parts of our IRA, because they are basically for the recipients,” Bautista said.
He said there should be a policy set in place, because not all municipalities and cities have the capacity to absorb new residents, specifically informal settlers.
“The national government should make sure that when it transfers families to the provinces, there will be additional funds for those local government units,” he said.
With the lack of a strong policy addressing migrants and host areas, Bautista urged the national government to have migrants’ welfare and development under the special powers that would be given to the President.
Bautista said Quezon City can still accommodate people coming from the rural areas, but Metro Manila will not be able to handle the additional traffic and there will not be enough land space.
The city mayor urged provinces to also develop and provide the same opportunities found in Metro Manila.
“It is here where you find the best schools, health facilities and various opportunities. We still have the capacity to absorb, but there is the issue of traffic. Metro Manila traffic is not moving because of migration,” Bautista said.
He added, “We are urging the provinces to develop. Learn from Metro governments and their transportation planning. Migration will continue because it is here where there are opportunities for them.”
Bautista urged for “growth outward Metro Manila,” in areas of Rizal, Cavite, Bulacan and Pampanga, and added that the shift to federalism will provide more financial power to provinces.
However, he said there may be a need to rethink the way regions are grouped, since a state should have more than one economically sustainable region.
Meanwhile, Bautista also discussed the weak state of the country’s immigration department, and relating it to the entry of drugs into the country.
“The weakness of our immigration policies is because our country is very porous. We have more than 7,000 islands. You have Zamboanga. You can come in through General Santos City. Other nationals look like us. They can easily adapt to their host region,” Bautista said.
He said illegal drugs are also related to migration, especially now that everything is becoming globalized.
“We are in the Asean integration. People come in and out. If we have weak immigration and security policies, it will not be a surprise if more illegal drugs come in to the country,” he said.
Former CFO Secretary Imelda Nicolas, IOM’s Ovais Sarmad, Unitar’s Nikhil Seth, UNDP-Serbia’s Irena Vojackova-Sollorano, World Bank’s Dr. Colleen Thouezand and Quito’s Cesar Mantilla also participated in the forum.
The forum is an annual gathering of mayors and city leaders that aims to discuss globally relevant policies and foster dialogue on practices concerning governance on migration and the role of diaspora in development.
