Justice Secretary Vitaliano Aguirre II. ARNOLD ALMACEN/INQUIRER FILE PHOTO
Justice Secretary Vitaliano Aguirre II on Monday threw his support behind President Duterte’s plan to scrap barangay elections scheduled for October and just handpick officials of 42,000 village councils across the country as part of the administration’s narcotics crackdown.
“I’m in favor for the reasons given by (the President). It could help cleanse the ranks of barangay officialdom,” Aguirre said in a text message to reporters.
The secretary weighed in on the issue as lawmakers, among them Mr. Duterte’s allies, expressed opposition to the President’s proposal to shelve the barangay elections in October, warning that it would only promote political patronage.
Without presenting evidence to back up his sweeping claim, the President has claimed that 40 percent of about 340,000 barangay chairs and council members were involved in the illegal drug trade.
Aguirre said moving the village polls to a later date and allowing Mr. Duterte to designate barangay officials would not violate the 1987 Constitution.
“(There’s) nothing unconstitutional (with that). But an enabling law may be needed to appoint OICs (officers in charge),” he said.
An administration ally has gotten the ball rolling on the proposal to delay the barangay elections and empower the President to fill up the ensuing vacancies.
Surigao del Norte Rep. Robert Ace Barbers, chair of the House dangerous drugs committee, has filed House Bill No. 5359 to “support the President’s call to eliminate drugs and corruption” among the leaders of the country’s smallest political unit.
The bill seeks to deem terminated incumbent barangay officials who are serving in a holdover capacity after the village elections set for October 2016 was delayed by a year through Republic Act No. 10923.
In their place, OICs shall be appointed by the President.
Reset for May 2020
The measure also seeks to postpone the barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan elections to the fourth Monday of May 2020, or May 25, 2020.
It effectively resets the cycle, as subsequent barangay elections were to be held every three years on the second Monday of May beginning 2023.
The proposed terms of officers to be elected in May 2020 were to begin at noon of June 30, 2020. Afterward, the three-year terms were to start at noon of Nov. 30 beginning 2023.
Barbers’ bill tasks the Commission of Elections with coming up with the implementing rules and regulations for the law.
First line of defense
In his explanatory note, Barbers said barangays were the country’s first line of defense in the grassroots level.
“However, how will the barangay lead this war if some officials are patrons and protectors of drug lords? The barangay system is merely giving more benefit to the political patrons of these barangay officials, added to the fact that there is purported influence of drug money in the political exercise,” he said.