key point in adopting federalism in the philippines

Examples of federal countries: United States, Canada, Australia, Brazil, India and Malaysia Pros          

Locals decide for themselves. Local Government Units will be more effective and locals will be given a chance to actively participate in the matters of their own region. States can establish policies that may not be adopted nationwide. Since the country consists of people from diverse culture and religious beliefs, a State can now establish policies that may be useful on its own but not applicable to the rest. More power over funds and resources. Local governments can now manage their own local funds, estate tax, business permit fees and other resources without getting a go signal from the national government in Manila. Promotes specialization. The national and state governments can choose an area they would like to focus on. Develops a healthy competition among states. The different states can now focus on economic development using their core competencies and industries. Possible solution to the Mindanao conflict. The creation of the state of Bangsamoro may address the concerns of separatists who long for more autonomy over the administration of Muslim Mindanao. Decongestion of Metro Manila. The fiscal autonomy for state governments could lead to a just allocation of the countries wealth allowing the people to settle on their own states. Lessens dependence on Metro Manila. Regions can now work independently of Metro Manila for most concerns. Brings government closer to people. The state governments will now be able to exercise their powers well since they can directly support the people in their needs without delays. Economic development in each State. More investors may decide to widen their scope to the states and people won’t be finding a need to go to large cities such as Manila for more jobs and opportunities. Thus, reducing the rate of unemployment and underemployment.



Geographical The Philippines having an archipelagic and mountainous topography necessitates the federal system to consolidate power and

unity. The consolidating power of federalism over territory makes it practicable in the Philippine setting. The Philippines is an archipelagic territory. It consists of around 7, 100 islands. These islands extend from north to south along a 1, 100 mi. area in the Pacific Ocean. These scattered land masses are grouped into Luzon in the north, Visayas in the center, and Mindanao in the south. Studies show that 95% of the country’s land area and population are situated on its 11 of its largest islands. These 11 largest islands (excepting the central plai in Luzon) have the geographic characteristics of being mountainous, and coastlines that are heavily indented. Manila, the Republic’s premiere city and poitical, economic and educational center, has a geopolitical situation of being located on Luzon Island to the north and very distant from the south. The single central government in a unitary political system is impractical to govern a vast expanse of land, or a land with fragmented topography, since the various local governments become reliant to its pyramidal hierarchy. With the distance of the territories, the situation in one area could be different in the others (such as weather, health related eventualities, school and economic activities.) (Castillo, 2011) . The presence of competent regional institutions, and practice of federal processes, substantiates the fact that a federal system is well suited for managing large areas of territory or even fragmented areas.

Figure 5. Geographical Map of the Philippines By having a federal system of government, the various regions of the Philippines will become federal states.



Political

Instead of having a unitary system with local government units reliant to the central government, the Philippines can have two levels of government. The first level is the national government which is a federal government. The second level of government is the regional level to be named States. Both levels exercise powers that are constitutionally granted upon them. The Philippine Federal Government will have jurisdiction to administer and legislate over matters of national concern such as foreign affairs, national defense and the military, currency, national economy, along with other powers within the revised Constitution. The Philippine State government will have powers to administer and legislate over matters of immediate concern to their area of jurisdiction. See Table 2. National State The national government will be divided into three branches, the executive, legislative and judiciary. The executive branch will be headed by the President and the Vice President. The mode of their election will be the same as provided in the 1987 Constitution. Contrary in the current constitution, the President and Vice President shall be elected as a team; the vote counted for the President shall be also counted for the Vice President. The legislative branch shall be composed of the Senate and the House of Representatives. The Senate shall have seventy-five members whom six senators will be elected as representative of a certain state in a state-wide election. The House of Representatives shall be composed of not more than three hundred fifty (350) members elected from the cities apportioned from the provinces and the Federal Administrative Region while the Senate shall have seventy- five members (75), every state shall be represented by six (6) senators elected by the qualified voters in state-wide elections and nine (9) senators representing citizens overseas. The judiciary will be the same as provided in the current constitution.

Regional or Component State The Regional or Component States shall have an executive and legislative department. Executive powers shall be vested to a State Governor who is elected by the people of a certain state. There shall be a StateVice Governor who will be tasked to preside the State Legislature. The State Legislature shall be composed of members from every province and sectors of the society. Each member shall be elected first as a member of the Sangguniang Panlalawigan who is elected by his fellow members to be their representative to the State Legislature. The State Legislature shall have the power to enact laws regarding with: Public health, sanitation, hospitals, dispensaries and drug rehabilitation, institutions and facilities excepting those established by Congress or which it may establish in any part of the republic. Agriculture, agrarian reform, infrastructures, air and sea ports, and other sectoral concerns shall be under their jurisdiction for enacting laws. Local Governments The Local Governments such as the provinces, cities, municipalities and barangays shall retain their territorial jurisdiction as provided by the Local Government Code of 1991. However, there are still changes with the LGU Code, the Sangguniang Kabataan or SK will be totally abolished. Moreover, the State Governor shall have the power to supervise local governments contrary to the provision of the Code that the President has direct supervisory powers over the Local Governments.

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EXCLUSIVE JURISDICTION FEDERAL CONGRESS

STATE LEGISLATURE

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                   

National security The sole power to declare war Foreign Relations Foreign Trade Customs The Federal Currency, fiscal and monetary system, taxation, budget and audit Immigration, emigration and extradition Interstatae commerce and trade Federal Public Works and Infrastractures Federal Postal and Telecommunications Federal air, sea and land transportation Intellectual Property and copyright Meteorology Grants-in-Aids to States Federal Census and Statistics Loans Federal Penal System Genetic Research Settlement of territorial and other Diputes among States Offenses defined in the Revised Penal Code and laws passed by Congress

            



                    

Public Health and Sanitation Agriculture Land use and development Land surveys Taxes and duties Fisheries Public works and infrastracture State public corporations Trade, Industry and tourism Trade relations Bankruptcy Trust and trustees Compelling the attendance of State, local government officials, or persons doing business in the State their testimony evidence or producing evidence Payment of the share of State of the national public debt that was used to funds projects or programs for the development of the Nation Governace to the customs and traditions of the indigenous populations of the States concerned Penalizing offenses wthin jurisdiction Police with jurisdiction over crimes committed within the State Total ban of gambling activities Local prisons Transfer from one state to another of persons under investigation Wildlife Mines and Mineral resources Water supply Social securities Cooperatives and micro finace activities Weights and measure Price Control Labor and employment Science and technology Free education from pre school up to secondary and subsidized colleges and universities Academic institutions Charities Registration of Marriage Pilgrimages to places outside the Republic The general welfare of the people of the States

Table 2. Exclusive jurisdiction of Federal Congress nd State Legislature under the constitution provided in the proposed Joint Resolution No. 10 

Economic Existence of concentration of such enormous powers in Manila has created only one center of finance and development in the

country resulting in a highly centralized system of government, leaving other regions behind, resulting to massive poverty incidence within the locality of remote provinces and regions. The fact exists that not only government, but also economy and education, and by extension technology and other blessings of development are centered on Manila. In unitary system of government, these create an unequal developmental environment for all the other regions of the Philippines. As supported by statistical data from the National Statistical Coordination Board (NCSB), National Capital Region or Metro Manila has the least percentage of poverty incidence among

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families among regions of the Philippines, vastly out-performing the southern island of Mindanao and other regions. In Luzon, the broad central zone around Manila shares to some extent the capital’s relatively high standing, particularly in regards to poverty. First Semester Per Capita Poverty Threshold and Poverty Incidence among Families, by Region and Province: 2006, 2009 and 2012 Per Capita Poverty Threshold (PhP) 2006

2009

2012

Poverty Incidence among Families (%) 2006

2009

2012

PHILIPPINES

6,703

8,448

9,385

23.4

22.9

22.3

NCR 1st District b/ 2nd District b/ 3rd District 4th District b/

7,718 7,718 7,718 7,718 7,718

9,456 9,456 9,456 9,456 9,456

10,084 10,084 10,084 10,084 10,084

2.8 2.7 2.8 3.2 2.4

3.7 4.4 3.2 6.5 2.1

3.8 3.8 3.1 4.9 3.8

CAR Abra Apayao b/ Benguet b/ Ifugao Kalinga b/ Mt. Province b/

7,031 7,273 6,835 6,744 7,183 6,518 7,598

8,492 8,753 8,210 8,096 8,647 7,843 9,129

9,734 9,908 9,336 9,407 9,999 8,712 10,573

25.6 41.6 51.3 6.1 32.8 43.6 40.2

22.7 41.8 43.9 7.0 28.4 25.8 42.6

22.6 34.4 59.8 4.3 47.5 29.4 34.8

Region I Ilocos Norte b/ Ilocos Sur b/ La Union Pangasinan

7,086 7,345 7,290 7,017 7,031

8,729 8,979 9,135 8,607 8,660

9,224 9,313 10,406 9,148 8,972

23.3 16.3 17.9 21.9 26.5

18.5 14.6 14.9 21.4 19.5

16.7 11.0 17.1 19.8 17.0

Region II Batanes a/ Cagayan Isabela Nueva Vizcaya b/ Quirino

6,984 9,022 7,222 6,849 6,802 6,640

8,566 11,084 8,875 8,421 8,365 8,141

9,503 13,190 9,341 9,564 9,283 9,709

22.0 0.0 25.8 23.5 12.4 12.1

22.3 14.3 21.3 26.7 11.6 14.5

19.8 21.4 17.7 21.7 17.0 21.7

Region III Aurora a/ Bataan Bulacan Nueva Ecija Pampanga Tarlac Zambales b/

7,344 6,798 6,874 7,204 7,908 6,850 6,910 7,229

9,251 8,481 8,707 9,012 9,925 8,420 8,622 9,086

10,121 9,429 9,374 9,878 10,662 9,620 9,557 10,701

13.0 22.4 9.4 6.8 26.3 3.3 20.7 17.3

12.5 20.4 5.5 7.5 27.0 5.9 15.5 9.4

12.2 30.7 7.3 6.7 23.0 6.4 14.0 18.0

Region IV-A Batangas Cavite b/ Laguna Quezon Rizal

6,611 6,823 6,576 6,758 6,293 7,356

8,481 8,604 8,200 8,631 7,945 9,300

9,601 9,895 9,808 9,863 8,949 10,225

10.1 13.3 2.9 5.8 27.4 5.5

10.8 14.1 3.8 7.4 22.8 9.5

11.2 19.4 4.1 6.3 22.6 7.6

Region IV-B Marinduque

6,238 6,296

7,751 7,812

8,527 8,509

34.1 33.0

30.6 25.0

28.4 29.4

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Per Capita Poverty Threshold (PhP) 2006

2009

2012

Poverty Incidence among Families (%) 2006

2009

2012

Occidental Mindoro b/ Oriental Mindoro b/ Palawan b/ Romblon

6,414 6,604 5,741 6,298

7,966 8,207 7,149 7,737

8,484 8,599 8,168 9,247

39.5 33.8 30.5 38.4

28.4 33.0 29.3 35.8

38.0 26.2 25.2 29.8

Region V Albay Camarines Norte b/ Camarines Sur Catanduanes a/ Masbate Sorsogon

6,618 6,855 6,439 6,726 6,469 6,443 6,389

8,420 8,732 8,221 8,578 8,210 8,194 8,172

9,022 9,363 9,166 9,097 9,154 8,660 8,715

36.2 32.3 29.5 38.7 31.2 47.8 30.6

36.5 33.9 32.4 37.2 20.3 49.8 34.3

34.1 36.1 24.7 33.5 27.1 44.2 32.1

Region VI Aklan Antique Capiz b/ Guimaras a/ Iloilo Negros Occidental

6,421 6,680 6,474 6,794 6,429 6,367 6,296

8,153 8,440 8,215 8,663 8,133 8,112 8,002

8,957 8,785 8,308 9,973 9,374 9,343 8,538

27.5 32.3 44.6 25.6 25.4 20.8 28.9

26.7 38.4 34.0 22.9 18.6 22.4 28.3

24.7 21.0 32.1 25.4 26.2 21.9 26.2

Region VII Bohol Cebu Negros Oriental Siquijor a/

7,269 7,100 7,657 6,668 7,068

8,648 8,399 9,052 7,912 8,357

9,296 9,354 9,436 9,046 8,928

35.0 41.0 28.3 50.3 33.3

31.6 38.6 26.7 41.9 26.1

28.8 32.5 22.4 45.3 24.6

Region VIII Biliran Eastern Samar Leyte Northern Samar Southern Leyte b/ Western Samar

6,266 5,851 6,566 6,350 6,601 6,196 5,486

8,107 7,600 8,539 8,276 8,607 8,078 7,155

8,989 8,553 10,054 8,593 9,511 9,805 7,881

33.3 24.2 39.4 33.2 45.1 21.9 29.6

36.2 34.6 46.7 33.1 43.6 28.2 37.4

37.2 20.7 59.4 31.9 43.7 36.4 36.0

Region IX Zamboanga Zamboanga Zamboanga Isabela City

del Norte del Sur Sibugay a/

6,159 6,723 5,764 5,600 6,331

8,053 8,717 7,479 7,183 8,229

8,881 9,114 8,883 8,160 9,674

41.0 61.5 30.6 37.2 38.1

41.5 63.6 29.1 40.8 23.6

36.9 50.3 30.1 36.8 19.4

Region X Bukidnon Camiguin a/ Lanao del Norte Misamis Occidental b/ Misamis Oriental

6,450 6,515 5,878 6,285 6,030 6,737

8,456 8,588 7,834 8,302 7,941 8,861

9,604 10,048 9,290 9,467 8,985 9,566

35.1 40.4 27.4 36.4 37.2 29.3

35.4 38.8 17.2 40.4 40.1 29.0

35.6 43.3 34.9 42.5 36.6 25.0

Region XI Davao del Norte Davao del Sur b/ Davao Oriental Compostela Valley

6,721 6,746 6,712 6,565 6,869

8,547 8,580 8,550 8,348 8,752

9,927 10,302 9,639 9,659 10,477

26.9 32.2 20.9 41.8 29.5

27.3 29.2 20.8 47.6 32.7

28.6 30.9 22.3 48.0 36.3

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Per Capita Poverty Threshold (PhP) 2006

2009

2012

Poverty Incidence among Families (%) 2006

2009

2012

Region XII North Cotabato Saranggani South Cotabato b/ Sultan Kudarat Cotabato City a/, b/

6,619 5,963 6,422 6,858 6,925 7,459

8,126 7,321 7,890 8,439 8,508 9,172

9,243 8,969 9,303 9,797 8,642 10,168

34.7 29.3 40.8 28.5 51.9 33.6

31.1 24.4 45.4 26.8 44.2 24.5

37.5 43.9 46.5 28.0 41.6 41.5

Caraga Agusan del Norte Agusan del Sur b/ Surigao Del Norte Surigao Del Sur

6,996 6,943 7,292 6,980 6,734

8,905 8,860 9,251 8,881 8,571

9,779 9,528 9,847 10,122 9,636

43.3 37.3 45.7 45.3 45.1

43.3 33.5 51.3 47.7 43.2

34.1 32.0 38.6 34.6 31.8

ARMM Basilan Lanao del Sur Maguindanao Sulu Tawi-tawi b/

6,319 6,347 6,443 6,241 6,860 5,691

8,257 8,191 8,309 8,048 8,837 7,289

10,027 9,541 10,970 9,530 9,996 8,244

43.0 31.2 38.1 47.7 42.9 50.6

42.0 37.4 51.4 37.6 37.9 48.3

46.9 32.5 68.9 57.8 30.3 20.8

Table 3. The National Statistical Coordination Board (NSCB) releases its latest report today on the state of poverty in the country. The report— using data from the Family Income and Expenditure Survey (FIES) conducted by the National Statistics Office (NSO) last July 2012– measured poverty incidence or the proportion of people below the poverty line to the total population It was also shown on study that economic development in the Philippines remains very geographically uneven and concentrated in Manila garnering only a percentage of 3.8 of poverty incidence, more than ten-fold advantage over its poorest region, as shown in Table 3 which is the ARMM or Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao with 46.9 percentage poverty incidence.

Figure 6. Philippine per capita Gross Domestic Product by region, in Philippine Peso, 2011 based n NSCB, National Income Accounts (2011); NSO, Family Income and Expenditure Surveys (2011).

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Manila dominates the Philippine economy, with the National Capital Region (NCR) generating a little more than one-third of the country’s GDP in recent years with over P150, 000 in year 2011 prices (see Figure 6). It is also by far the wealthiest region over the recent years and up to now, with a per capita income about 2.5 times the national average on year 1998 and 2003 (see Table 3). This is about double the income of the next richest region and 10 times that of the poorest. (Arsenio M. Balisacan, Hal Hill, and Sharon Faye Piza, 2009)

The existence of “Manila- centric” attitude of government where most fund and infrastructure projects are given to Manila is undoubtedly haltering the spur of developments in the countryside areas of the Philippines especially, Mindanao. By having a federal system, the various regional goverments of the Philippines, become States and can have proper constitutional powers to pursue autonomous socio-economic agenda for development. This in application is federal decentralization through constitutional devolution, which is the redistribution of governmental powers and recognition of regional governments by means of the principal law of the land. Because the region exists with their own levels of government, each having competent powers over immediate concerns, they can act without the need of dependence on the national government (Castillo, 2011).



Cultural The Philippines comprises different cultures and ethnicity. Every locality has its own diversed cultures, customs, traditions

and ways of living. Diversity in ethnic group and regionalism creates tensions on political system, and when taken into extreme, escalates regionalistic division or even armed in worst cases.

Figure 7. Ethnic Group Population in the Philippines, National Statistics Office, 2011

The Joint Resolution No.10 as one of its explanatory notes had suggested that federalization of the republic would speed up the development of the entire nation and help dissipate the causes of the insurgency throughout the land, particularly, the centuries-old Moro rebellions resulting from cultural differences.

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Figure 8. Religions in the Philippines, National Statistics Office, 2011

As recognition and powers granted by the Federal Constitution allow the regional governments to make policies that fit the culture, religious beliefs, traditions, and ethno linguistic needs of the people within their territory. And as individuals bound by a covenant, they are accommodated as one while retaining their own uniqueness. 

Social Federalism would make most policies local. States could tailor policy to fit their specific needs. In addition, it would give local

governments more firsthand data on what policies should be implement with uniformity to the local needs.

Regional states can tailor programs to meet local needs, which is strength in itself, as it sought to provide services up to smallest communities and marginalized such as providing cooperatives and financial institutions that lend funds for farmer-beneficiaries, adopting modified health care programs and comprehensive approach to medical development, promotion of mandatory right of the families or family association in the planning and implemention policies and pograms affecting them, free education and empowered representation of women on election.

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