Reference No. (2019-08-26) MEMORANDUM |
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FOR : | THE HONORABLE CITY MAYORS |
FROM : | Atty. Shereen Gail C. Yu-Pamintuan Executive Director |
RE : | Identification of Critical Issues Affecting City Government Administration and Governance |
DATE: | 20 August 2019 |
As articulated during his acceptance speech and in keeping with the essence of democracy, National President and Bacolod City Mayor Bing Leonardia's vision for the League of Cities of the Philippines is for it to be an organization for the cities and by the cities. As such, the Secretariat has been mandated to collate all issues and concerns of the league members with regard to city government administration and governance.
During the 1st meeting of the National Executive Board (NEB) on 20 July 2019, the following issues were discussed:
1. Immediate resolution of the Mandanas Case. We join the clamor of various local government leagues to implement the Supreme Court decision this year and not in 2022 to support the delivery of various services to our constituencies. We are writing a formal appeal to President Duterte on the speedy resolution of this case.
2. Liberalization of the guidelines on the utilization of the Special Education Fund. It is our position that the SEF guidelines should be reviewed and updated to cover expenses such as the increased allowances of teachers, purchase of books and other instructional materials. We also call for a uniform and consistent application of this policy.
3. Exemption of the local chief executives from the restrictive provision of Executive Order No. 77, on Local and Foreign Travels. It is our position that while the policy benefits the majority of the bureaucracy as it standardized the rules and regulations and rates of expenses on local and foreign travels, it will have detrimental effects on the security and safety of local chief executives.
4. Speedy Resolution of the approval requirements under Administrative Order No.14 on Centralized Procurement of Government Vehicles. The League agrees with the position to rationalize the acquisition of motor vehicles. We are merely calling for a timeframe for the approval and procurement processes and to ensure that there is no unnecessary delay in the processing and decision of applications made under this AO.
Apart from discussing these issues, it was agreed that dialogues with national government agencies specifically, DBM, DILG, COA, and DepEd will be organized in the succeeding meetings of the Board.
In this regard, we would be grateful for your insights on the above issues and in addition to the same, solicit your individual issues and concerns which can be articulated to the above-mentioned government agencies and other instrumentalities or be included in the agenda of our National President.
Our Secretariat Staff will be happy to coordinate with you on these matters. Alternatively, you may send your inputs to league.cities.philippines@gmail.com or get in touch with our Deputy Executive Director for Policy, Programs, and Projects, Ms. Veron Hitosis at telephone no. 02.470.6813 or mobile no. 0917.816.95456 for any inquiries or clarifications.
Thank you for your cooperation.
Atty. Shereen Gail C. Yu-Pamintuan
Executive Director