Citing the necessity to make it more responsive to the present, Union of Local Authorities of the Philippines (ULAP) president Dax Cua has called for a review of the Local Government Code.
Cua made the call during the From Plan to Action: Philippine Development Plan (PDP) 2023-2028 Forum at the Philippine International Convention Center on Monday, January 30.
“There were many mentions earlier about artificial intelligence, 4th industrial revolution, so much technology to be infused, and of course these things can all be better implemented if we were able to review the LGC in a comprehensive scale instead of just improving tiny bits and pieces of the Code.”
The Quirino governor was a panelist at the said forum, which formally launched the PDP, that maps out the government’s strategy for economic recovery and social transformation.
Cua touted the role that the LGC, which was enacted in 1991, had played in ushering local government units towards progress.
“However, it is probably time already –or the time has lapsed– that we took a look at this piece of legislation and tried to improve it to become responsive to the needs of this age and generation,” he said.
Section 521 of the Code states that Congress shall “undertake a mandatory review of this Code at least once every five (5) years and as often as it may deem necessary, with the primary objective of providing a more responsive and accountable local government structure.”
“There were many mentions earlier about artificial intelligence, 4th industrial revolution, so much technology to be infused, and of course these things can all be better implemented if we were able to review the LGC in a comprehensive scale instead of just improving tiny bits and pieces of the Code,” he added.
Cua expressed hope that LGUs could work with the Department of Interior and Local Government and other national government agencies in this regard.
The governor also underscored the need to localize the PDP if it is to succeed.
“I believe as the pandemic taught us just a few years ago, what’s key to our survival is that local governments spoke directly with national government heads to be able to localize all the plans. So immediate to our mission as local government executives is to localize the PDP into actionable, measurable local targets, so that these lofty goals set on paper in this document can actually be realized, measured, and enjoyed by the Filipino people,” Cua said.
