CONGRESS will review and amend the Local Government Code of 1991 to increase the internal revenue allotment (IRA) of local government units in rural areas, Speaker Alan Peter Cayetano said on Wednesday.
In a news conference following the ocular inspection at the New Clark City sports facilities for the 30th Southeast Asian Games (SEA Games) in November, Cayetano said this review on the LGU Code seeks to address rapid urbanization, as well as traffic in Metro Manila.
“[We are now facing] rapid urbanization; we really have to have a balance plan. Congress has a plan [we will tackle it after] we finish [the 2020 national] budget. One of the solutions of Congress is that we really need to look at the Local Government Code and the distribution of IRA among LGUs,” Cayetano said.
According to the Speaker, the amendments to the LGU Code will focus on rural areas.
“[We should] give rural areas an incentive and provide them with good schools and hospitals so that not everyone will settle in urban areas [to seek good facilities and incentives],” he added.
Under the 2020 national budget, Metro Manila will be allocated P40.4 billion out of the nationwide total of P648.9 billion in IRA next year.
Earlier, Deputy Speaker Rep. Luis Raymund Villafuerte of Camarines also urged the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) to work out a plan on how to give out the full IRA due to LGUs since 1992 based on the Supreme Court decision that the IRA for LGUs should include all taxes collected from other government agencies apart from the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR), especially the value-added tax (VAT).
Villafuerte, citing estimates by Batangas Gov. Hermilando Mandanas and former Senate President Aquilino Pimentel Jr., said the IRA based on all national taxes that were withheld from LGUs amounts to about P800 billion from 2010 to 2016 alone.
Villafuerte said this landmark ruling would help the national government in boosting the economy of LGUs once the country commences the shift to a federal system of government.
Section 6, Article X of the 1987 Constitution states that local government units shall have a just share, as determined by law, in the national taxes which shall be automatically released to them.
Program for the poor
Moreover, Cayetano said the government will also launch a program that will focus on the 20 poorest provinces in the country.
“We will launch the ‘2020-20 program’ for the 20 poorest provinces in 2020. In this program, the Department of Trade and Industry, Tesda and the Department of Agriculture will collaborate to help the 20 poorest provinces. [It’s not right that the nation engages in a scramble for resources ad leaves out the poor],” Cayetano said.
According to data on poverty incidence released by the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA), poverty worsened in 17 provinces and cities, including districts in Metro Manila, in the first half of 2018.
Using PSA data, the BusinessMirror had earlier computed that the highest increases in poverty incidence were recorded in Basilan and Isabela City, where it worsened to 65.3 percent and 52.6 percent, respectively. The rate rose by 36.5 percentage points from 28.8 percent in Basilan, and by 31.97 percentage points in Isabela City compared to the first half of 2015.
Other provinces and cities that recorded increases in poverty incidence were Tawi-Tawi which recorded an increase of 6.34 percentage points; Bataan, 5.79 percentage points; Davao Oriental, 4.68 percentage points; Batanes, 3.26 percentage points; Zamboanga del Sur, 2.02 percentage points; Biliran, 1.96 percentage points; and Zambales, 1.91 percentage points.
The list also included the Third District of Metro Manila (Caloocan, Malabon, Navotas and Valenzuela), which recorded a poverty rate of 8.1 percent, or 1.57 percentage points higher than the figure recorded in 2015; and the First District of Metro Manila (Manila, the capital city) which saw poverty incidence go up by 0.91 percentage points to 5.7 percent.
However, the National Economic and Development Authority (Neda) remains confident that the Philippines is on track to meeting its poverty target of 14 percent by 2022.
Image credits: Nonoy Lacza