Former Interior Secretary and Mandaluyong City Mayor Benjamin “Benhur” Abalos Jr. underscored the need to amend the Local Government Code of 1991, saying it no longer meets the needs of many local governments across the country today.
“The Local Government Code has laid out how the national government, governors, cities, municipalities, and barangays should operate, but it’s been over 30 years. We’ve found a lot of problems that need to be fixed,” Abalos said on Monday.
With many barangays and municipalities struggling to fund essential services like road construction and school buildings, Abalos believes updating the code is crucial to ensuring local governments can meet the needs of their people.
One of the main issues, according to Abalos, is that many barangays and smaller municipalities don’t have enough money to support infrastructure projects that the Local Government Code has delegated to them.
“For instance, barangays are expected to build, repair and maintain barangay roads under RA 7160, but in many places, especially those in the far-flung barangays and 4th to 5th class municipalities, they simply don’t have the financial capability. The same goes for schools—LGUs are supposed to handle their construction, but smaller and low-income LGUs simply can’t fund it,” he said.
Abalos said when he was still DILG secretary, he commissioned a study with the help of the Local Government Academy and the Union of Local Authorities of the Philippines to review the Local Government Code.
He said their findings have been submitted to President Marcos Jr. before he resigned to run for senator under the Alyansa Para sa Pagbabago 2025.
Abalos said he will be pushing for these recommendations to be passed into law.
Abalos, who served as mayor of Mandaluyong City for 15 years, underscored that there are certain areas, like agriculture and health, that should be handled by the national government instead of being left to local governments.
Abalo’s 15-year tenure as the mayor of Mandaluyong turned the once dormant metropolis into a model city, earning recognition from the Department of Trade and Industry and the Asian Institute of Management in 2002. By 2012, Mandaluyong proudly earned the title “Tiger City of the Philippines.”
Another key point Abalos raised is the need for more modern healthcare facilities, especially in poorer provinces.
“Not all provinces can afford to build a tertiary hospital, even a secondary, and procure advanced equipment, like for intubation. The national government needs to step in and provide support for these areas,” Abalos said.
Lastly, Abalos pointed out that the RA 7160 was created long before the internet became a vital part of daily life and governance, saying that the revisions should include provisions that empower local governments to harness technology in delivering public services more efficiently.
“The world has changed. The way we govern has changed. Our laws need to keep up,” Abalos said.
