Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) Secretary Benjamin Abalos Jr. has said that the agency wants to update the existing Local Government Code to correct defects and return some of the responsibilities of local government units to the national government.
Among the supposed faults was mandating barangays, towns and cities build or maintain infrastructure like roads, schools, and hospitals even if the LGUs might not have funding for that.
“How about the fifth and sixth class (municipalities)?” Abalos asked, referring to the lowest categories of local government units based on income and population.
“Our recommendation is that from now on, all educational construction should be national,” Abalos said in an interview aired on PTV4.
He emphasized that the devolution of powers in the Local Government Code should be done properly
“Not all provinces are rich. You also have poor provinces. So we said this as much as possible, maybe it can be national as well. This is health care,” he also said, referring to tertiary hospitals that provinces are expected to put up.
Tertiary hospitals offer more specialized and advanced medical services.
