PAGADIAN CITY, Philippines—The mayors of the Philippines’ 16 new cities were visibly absent from Friday’s meeting here of the national executive board of the League of Cities of the Philippines.
Only the mayors or representatives of the 122 city-members showed up.
“They were not invited,” said Pagadian Mayor Samuel Co of the 16 newest cities. He said the LCP, which has a pending petition in the Supreme Court asking it to void the law creating the new cities, considers them as municipalities.
The Supreme Court has flip-flopped on the issue and the league is asking it to flip-flop once more, this time in the league’s favor.
In a decision last February, the Supreme Court upheld the constitutionality of the law converting into cities the municipalities of Baybay in Leyte; Bogo in Cebu; Catbalogan in Samar; Tandag in Surigao del Sur; Borongan in Eastern Samar; Tayabas in Quezon province; Lamitan in Basilan; Tabuk in Kalinga; Bayugan in Agusan del Sur; Batac in Ilocos Norte; Mati in Davao Oriental; Guihulngan in Negros Oriental; Cabadbaran in Agusan del Norte; Carcar in Cebu; El Salvador in Misamis Oriental; and Naga in Cebu.
In 2008, it declared the same law unconstitutional, saying the municipalities had failed to meet the criteria set by law for declaring a locality a city. But in 2009, it reversed that decision, giving the nod to the 16 towns’ cityhood. In 2010, the tribunal reversed itself again.
“Right now, there is a pending motion for reconsideration, so we still consider them municipalities,” Co said.
For the LCP, the new cities have not met either one or all of the criteria for them to be considered cities, The criteria have to do with size of the population, income and land area.
Reduced IRA
The league also claimed that the entry of the new cities would reduce their internal revenue allotment (IRA), local government units’ share of the taxes collected by the national government.
With a reduced IRA, Co said his city will lose at least P50 million, which can be used for social services, assistance to the police, city-paid public school teachers and salary increases for government workers.
Mayor Michelle Rabat of Mati, Davao Oriental, said in a phone interview she did not mind not having been invited to the LCP meeting.
“It’s expected. The LCP came out with a statement that they still intend to fight us. What’s important to Mati is that the city mayors of Southern Mindanao have accepted and recognized us,” Rabat said.
Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte has, in a way, accepted the fact that there are 16 new cities.
“We have to respect the Supreme Court. The Department of Budget Management has already acknowledged the entry judgment of the Supreme Court and correspondingly advised cities of the reduction (of IRA),” Duterte told the Inquirer.
“For Davao City, we have already considered the IRA reduction when we drafted the 2012 budget,” she added.
Optimistic
Valenzuela City Mayor Sherwin Gatchalian, who is also LCP vice president for the National Capital Region, was also optimistic that league members would soon recognize the new cities.
“We have filed a motion for reconsideration, yes, but we are not that optimistic,” he told the Inquirer.
Gatchalian said the LCP would eventually have to “respect the SC decision.”
“The LCP would not look good if it will not follow the Supreme Court, if it will not follow the law,” he said.
Interior Secretary Jesse Robredo, who was here for the LCP meeting, said his department could do nothing about the issue.
“It is something that they (LCP) have to address. We do not dictate on who will be the members, and I think it is something that should not be imposed,” Robredo told the Inquirer.
Gatchalian, however, was hopeful, saying more and more LCP members were recognizing the new cities.
“Maybe, next year they will be invited,” he said.
Until then, the LCP’s official letterhead will continue to carry the slogan “One Hundred Twenty-Two Cities, One Philippines.”