Republic of the Philippines
House of Representatives
Quezon City, Metro Manila

EIGHTEENTH CONGRESS
First Regular Session

HOUSE BILL No. 95!

Introduced by Rep. Dale “Along” R. Malapitan

Explanatory Note

Paragraph (1), Section 5, Article VI of the 1987 Constitutional states
that “the House of Representatives shall be composed of not more than two
hundred fifty members, unless otherwise fixed by law, who shall be elected
from legislative districts apportioned among the provinces, cities, and the
Metropolitan Manila Area in accordance with the number of their respective
inhabitants, and on the basis of a uniform and progressive ratio.

Paragraph (3) of the same section further provides that “each legislative
district shall comprise, as far as practicable, contiguous, compact and
adjacent territory. Each city with a population of at least two hundred fifty
thousand, or each province, shall have at least one representative.

Thus, pursuant to this constitutional mandate, an Ordinance was
adopted in October 15, 1986 by the framers of the 1987 Constitution which
was made appended thereto and ratified together in a plebiscite called for the
purpose, and which apportions the seats of the House of Representatives of
the Congress of the Philippines to the different legislative districts in provinces
and cities, and the Metropolitan Manila Area.

Under Section 1 thereof, for Metropolitan Manila Area, the City of
Caloocan was allocated two (2) seats, whereby the First District shall be
composed of seventy (70) barangays, all of Caloocan North of EDSA, while the
Second District shall consist of one hundred seventy seven (177) barangays,
all of Caloocan South of EDSA. Section 3 of the same Ordinance however
entitles any city whose population may thereafter increase to more than two
hundred fifty to have at least one Member or such number of Members as it
may be entitled to on the basis of the number of its inhabitants and according
to the standards set forth in Section 5, Article VI of the Constitution.

Noteworthy to mention that at the time of the passage of the said
Ordinance in 1986, Caloocan City has a population of around Six Hundred
Forty Five Thousand (645,000) people only, using the 1980 and 1990 Census
of Population and its average annual growth rate as basis therefor. Today,


exactly thirty-three years since that Ordinance was ordained, the city’s
population has grown by leaps and bounds, in that based on the 2015 Census
of Population of the Philippine Statistics Authority, Caloocan City has a total
number of inhabitants of One Million Five Hundred Eighty-Three Thousand
Nine Hundred Seventy-Eight (1,583,978), or a marked increase of Nine
Hundred Thirty-Eight Thousand Nine Hundred Seventy-Eight (938,978). Of
this city’s total population, 75.34% or 1,193,419 live in the First Legislative
District of the city and the rest reside in the Second Legislative District.

This latest information on the population census of the city therefore
impress a case of disproportion in the city’s entitlement for proportionate
representation in the House of Representatives since the current assignment
of seats therefor does not augurs well with the intent and established
standards set forth in Section 5, Article VI of the 1987 Constitution.
Conversely, Caloocan City, given the obtaining circumstances on its
population, is largely underrepresented in the Lower House of Congress and,
therefore, its interest not fully promoted and protected. Hence, this proposed
bill which seeks to reapportion the 1** Legislative District of Caloocan City is
designed to address this patent inequity of representation.

Finally, this bill is in substitution of House Bill No. 5560 filed on 20
November 2019 and carries the same subject matter. This bill though
operates to amend the former in the allocation of barangays composing the
new legislative districts.

Thus, with the foregoing, the immediate consideration and approval of
this proposed piece of legislation is highly recommended.

DALE “ALONG” R. ITAN


House of Representatives
Quezon City, Metro Manila

EIGHTEENTH CONGRESS
First Regular Session

HOUSE BILL No. 5961

Introduced by Rep. Dale “Along” R. Malapitan

AN ACT
REAPPORTIONING THE FIRST LEGISLATIVE DISTRICT OF THE CITY OF
CALOOCAN

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the Republic of the
Philippines in Congress assembled:

SECTION 1. Legislative Districts. - On the next national and local elections
after the effectivity of this Act, the 1*t Legislative District of Caloocan City is hereby
reapportioned into two legislative districts to be designated as follows:

(a) First Legislative District. - The First Legislative District shall be
composed of Barangays 1, 2, 3, 4, 77, 78, 79, 80, 81, 82, 83, 84, 85,
132, 133, 134, 135, 136, 137, 138, 139, 140, 141, 142, 143, 144, 145,
146, 147, 148, 149, 150, 151, 152, 153, 154, 155, 156, 157, 158, 159,
160, 161, 162, 163, 164, 165, 166, 167, 168, 169, 170, 171, 172, 173,
174, 175, 176, and 177;

(b) Third Legislative District. ~ The Third Legislative District shall be
composed of Barangays 178, 179, 180, 181, 182, 183, 184, 185, 186,
187, and 188.

SEC. 2. Holdover. — The incumbent Representative of the First Legislative
District of the City of Caloocan shall continue to represent the district until the new
Representatives of the newly created districts shall have been elected and qualified
in the immediately next national and local elections after the effectivity of this Act.

SEC. 3. Rules and Regulations. - The Commission on Elections shall
issue the necessary rules and regulations to implement this Act.

SEC. 4. Repealing Clause. - All laws, rules and regulations which are
inconsistent with this Act are hereby repealed, amended, or modified accordingly,

SEC. 5. Effectivity. - This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days after its
publication in the Official Gazette or in a newspaper of general circulation.

Approved,