Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Quezon City, Metro Manila

Fifteenth Congress
First Regular Session

House BiNo.__2415

Introduced by Rodolfo C. Farifias

EXPLANATORY NOTE

This Bill seeks to rationalize the terms of office of barangay and
sagguniang kabataan officials to six (6) years, with the hope that in due time, the
Constitution will be amended to likewise provide for a 6-year term for all other
elected officials.

A review of the history of the terms of office of barangay officials supports
the purpose of this Bill.

Pursuant to Sec. 6 of Batas Pambansa Blg. 222, ('a/Punong Barangay
(Barangay Captain) and six Kagawads ng Sangguniang Barangay (Barangay
Councilmen), who shall constitute the presiding officer and members of the
Sangguniang Barangay (Barangay Council) respectively" were first elected on
May 17, 1982. They had a term of six years which began on June 7, 1982

The Local Government Code of 1983 also fixed the term of office of local
elective officials at six years. Under this Code, the chief officials of the barangay
were the punong barangay, six elective sangguniang barangay members, the
kabataang barangay chairman, a barangay secretary and a barangay treasurer.

B.P. Big. 881, the Omnibus Election Code, reiterated that barangay
officials "shalll hold office for six years,” and stated that their election was to be
held "on the second Monday of May nineteen hundred and eighty eight and on
the same day every six years thereafter." [Emphasis supplied.]

The 1987 Philippine Constitution extended constitutional recognition to
barangays under Article X, Section 1 by specifying barangays as one of the
territorial and political subdivisions of the country, supplemented by Section 8 of
the same Article X, which provides:

SEC! 8. The term of office of elective local officials, except
barangay officials, which shall be determined by law, shall be three
years and no such official shall serve for more than three
consecutive terms. Voluntary renunciation of the office for any
length of time shall not be considered as an interruption in the
continuity of his service for the full term for which he was elected.
{Emphasis supplied.]

After the effectivity of the 1987 Constitution, the barangay election
originally scheduled by Batas Pambansa Big. 881 on the second Monday of May
1988 was reset to “the second Monday of November 1988 and every five years
thereafter by RA No. 6653." Section 2 of RA No. 6653 changed the term of office
of barangay officials and introduced a term limitation as follows:


officials — due to expire at noon of November 30, 2005 under RA No. 9164 — to
noon of November 30, 2007. .

As can be seen above, the three-year terms of local elective officials, as
well as members of the House of Representatives, only came to existence under
the 1987 Constitution, obviously as a “hang-over” from martial law. To be holding
elections of barangay and sangguniang kabataan officials every three (3) years is
not only expensive but divisive.

For this reason alone, the Constitution needs to be amended to provide for

a uniform term of office for the President and senators, on one hand, and for
members of the House of Representatives and all other local elective officials, on

the other.


Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Quezon City, Metro Manila

Fifteenth Congress
First Regular Session

No «2415

House BILL No.

Introduced by Rodolfo C. Farifias

AN ACT AMENDING REPUBLIC ACT NO. 9340, RESETTING
THE BARANGAY AND SANGGUNIANG KABATAAN
ELECTIONS, AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES.

SECTION 1. Section 1 of Republic Act No. 9340 is hereby amended to
read as follows:

' "SECTION 1. Date of Elections. — There shall be
synchronized barangay and sangguniang kabataan elections which
shall be held on second Monday of May 2012, and on the same
day every six (6) years thereafter."

SECTION 2. Section 4 of Republic Act No. 9340 is hereby amended to
read as follows:

"SEC. 4. Assumption of Office. — The terms of office of the
barangay and sangguniang kabataan officials elected under this
Act shall commence at noon of June 30 next following their
election."

SECTION 3. Hold Over. — All incumbent barangay and all sangguniang
kabataan officials shall remain in office unless sooner removed or suspended for
cause until their successors shall have been elected and qualified: Provided,
however, That barangay and all sangguniang kabataan officials who are ex-
officio. members of the sangguniang bayan, sangguniang panlungsod or
sangguniang panlalawigan, as the case may be, shall continue to serve as such
members in the sanggunian concerned until the next synchronized barangay and
sangguniang kabataan elections. The Liga ng mga Barangay at the municipal,
city, and provincial levels shall, within thirty (30) days after the next barangay
election, conduct elections for ex officio positions in the sanggunians under the
supervision of the Department of the Interior and Local Government.

SECTION 4. Implementing Rules and Regulations. — The Commission
on Elections (COMELEC) shall promulgate such rules and regulations necessary
to implement this Act

SECTION 5. Repealing Clause. — Alll laws, decrees, executive orders,
and rules and regulations, or parts thereof, inconsistent with the provisions of this
Act, are hereby repealed or modified accordingly

SECTION 6. Separability Clause. — If, for any reason, any section or
provision of this Act is held unconstitutional or invalid, the other sections or
provisions hereof shall not be affected and thereby remain in full force and effect.


SEC. 2. The term of office of barangay officials shall be for
five (5) years from the first day of January following their election
Provided, however, That no kagawad shall serve for more than two
(2) consecutive terms.

The election date set by RA No. 6653 on the second Monday of
November 1988 was postponed, yet, again to March 28, 1989 by RA No. 6679
whose pertinent provision states:

SEC. 1. The elections of barangay officials set on the
second Monday of November 1988 by Republic Act No. 6653 are
hereby postponed and reset to March 28, 1989. They shall serve a
term which shall begin on the first day of May 1989 and ending on
the thirty-first day of May 1994.

There shall be held a regular election of barangay officials
on the second Monday of May 1994 and on the same day every
five (5) years thereafter. Their term shalll be for five (5) years which

‘shall begin on the first day of June following the election and until
their successors shall have been elected and qualified: Provided,
That no barangay official shall serve for more than three (3)
consecutive terms.

The barangay elections shall be nonpartisan and shall be
conducted in an expeditious and inexpensive manner.

More than two (2) years after the 1989 barangay elections, RA No. 7160
(the Local Government Code) introduced the following changes in the law:

SEC. 43. __ Term of Office. — (a) The term of office of all
local elective officials elected after the effectivity of this Code shall
be three (3) years, starting from noon of June 30, 1992 or such
date as may be provided for by law, except that of elective
barangay officials: Provided, That all local officials first elected
during the local elections immediately following the ratification of
the 1987 Constitution shall serve until noon of June 30, 1992.

(b) No local elective official shall serve for more than
three (3) consecutive terms in the same position. Voluntary
renunciation of the office for any length of time shall not be
considered as an interruption in the continuity of service for the full
term for which the elective official concerned was elected.

(c) The term of office of barangay officials and members
of the sangguniang kabataan shall be for three (3) years, which
shall begin after the regular election of barangay officials on the
second Monday of May 1994.

On February 14, 1998, RA No. 8524 changed the three-year term of office
of barangay officials under Section 43 of the LGC to five (5) years.

On March 19, 2002, RA No. 9164 again fixed the term of office of
barangay officials at three (3) years on the reasoning that the barangay officials
should not serve a longer term than their supervisors

However, another change was introduced three years after or on duly 25,
2005 when RA No. 9340 extended the term of the then incumbent barangay


SECTION 7. Effectivity Clause. — This Act shall take effect fifteen (15)
days after its complete publication in at least two (2) national newspapers of
general circulation.

Approved,

ru