Federalism in the Philippines and its implications to Local Government Administration

1. Discuss the nature and scope of federalism

2. Discuss the local government structure under federalism

3. Discuss the service delivery mechanism in a federal government

ANSWERS:

1. Federalism is defined as a political organization in which the activities of the government

are divided between regional government and a central government in such a way that

each kind of government has some activities on which it makes final decisions. Another

definition of federalism is a system of government that establishes a constitutionally

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specified division of powers between different levels of government. Federalism is also a

system of government that includes a national government and at least one level of sub-

national government such as states, provinces and local government units, and that

enables each level to make some significant decisions independently of the others.

Although the independence in decision-making is not absolute, it gives each level the

ability to make decisions without the approval (formal or informal) of the other level. One

of the most important feature of federalism is the presence of relatively autonomous

levels of government, the central or national government, and the regional or state

government. These two governments should have a range of powers that the other

cannot encroach upon. Another feature of federalism emphasizes that responsibilities,

duties, powers and jurisdiction between the two levels of government should be defined

in a written constitution. Thus the relationship between the state government and the

national government can be conducted in a legal framework. Another feature of

federalism is the presence of a constitutional arbiter, usually the judicial branch (Supreme

Court), on case of disputes between the state government and the national government.

Another feature of federalism is the presence of institutions that link the state and

national government together. This is done as to ensure that the voices and opinions of

different states should be heard during policy making. This is usually done through

bicameral legislature.

There are potential advantages of federalism. Examples of which are:

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 Government remains close to people. Each province has political, social, economic

problems peculiar to the region itself.

 Encourages development of the nation in a decentralized and regional manner

and allows for unique and innovative methods for attacking social, economic and

political problems.

 Division of work between the central and regional governments leads to optimum

utilization of resources

 Federalism also ensures the separation of powers and prevents tyranny. Even if

one person or group took control of all branches of federal government, the state

government would still function independently.

 Federalism fosters state loyalties.

 Federalism is offered as an institutional solution to the problems associated with

scale and diversity

 Federal government is rooted in constitutionalism and pluralism

 Federalism broadens the base of power-sharing

 Federalism encourage innovative and pragmatic approaches to policy

development

 Federalism reduces the burden on the central authorities

 Federalism share resources across geographical space

 Federalism develop capacity and democratic responsibility

On the other hand, potential disadvantages of federalism includes the following:

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  Duplication of work and lack of coherence

 Overlapping of work and subsequent confusion regarding who is responsible for

what

 Additional operating costs

 Federalism can lead to over-government that will eventually result to corruption

because of the too many elected representatives with overlapping roles

 Federalism can also lead to inequality between the states and lead to unhealthy

competition and rivalry between them.

 Federalism can make the state governments selfish and concerned only about

their own region’s progress

 Increasing regional discrepancies of wealth, resources and outcomes

 Harmful economic competition between subnational units

 Judicialization of politics

 Potential exclusion of minorities

 Strengthening of local elites who misuse power

 Ineffective governance because of lack of capacity

 Instability and threats to democracy

2. Since the assumption of power of President Rodrigo Duterte, there was a strong proposal

for a shift of government from unitary to a federal form of government. He openly

advocated and called for support from policymakers towards this shift primarily to

maximize regional growth potentials and to resolve decades of conflict in Mindanao. For

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the federal system of government, the relationship between the central government and

the local government is vertical. In certain policy areas where the central government

has exclusive jurisdiction but sometimes there are certain policy areas where both the

central & local government have jurisdiction which is concurrent or shared by both

governments. On the other hand, for the unitary form of government, the relationship

between the central government and the local government is also vertical but the central

government is the single central source of authority while the local government is only a

subordinate to the central government. The federal political structure offers the most

appropriate system of governance where the national identity of nations is preserved and

maintained while at the same time political unity and democracy are promoted. This

structure assures that a number of separate states are merged into a single federal

republic with the legislative and executive powers divided coordinately between

federation and unit government each of which acts directly to the people. The suitability

of federalism becomes more perceptible as the major diversities are geographically

grouped. The territorial expression of cultural differences make governance easier and

feasible compared to a country where major diversities have no inclusive territorial base.

Among the features of the proposed federal constitution are it emphasis on the autonomy

of local government units, as well as the recognition of the importance of information and

communication technology in nation-building. It also provides social and economic rights

which entitle every citizen to food, healthcare, decent housing and livelihood. Under the

federal system, the national or federal government will still exercise national security,

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 foreign affairs, international trade, customs and tariffs, immigration, economic and

monetary powers.

3. The political inequalities present in the social structures of the Christian dominated

country like the Philippines evidently lies in the prevailing inequalities in its economic

opportunities. A major constraint to Philippine development is the concentration of

resources and the power to deploy them in the hands of the national government. This

caused the inefficiency in the delivery of government services and has worsened regional

inequalities by sustaining patronage, corruption, and the growth of political dynasties.

Reducing this concentration of resources is an essential initial step in addressing the long-

standing problems of poverty and uneven economic growth.

One supposed advantage of decentralization and federalism is greater efficiency

in the delivery of basic services. However, according to the International Institute for

Democracy and Electoral Assistance, federalism might actually lead to widening disparity

of outcomes in terms of the provision and quality of public services. Citizens in some

states may be efficiently receiving services that are of high quality but citizens in other

states have to deal with poor services. What mechanisms can be put in place to achieve

national and state targets regarding delivery of services?

The national government budget has the attributes of a common resource pool.

Taxes collected from all taxpayers nationwide are pooled to finance the provision

of government services. Some of these services have benefits that are national in scope

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such as defense and foreign relations. But most of services funded by the national

government have localized benefits. On the financing side, it is also the interest of each

sector/locality/group to minimize its share of the tax burden. A major reason for the

Philippines’ weak tax effort relative to its regional peers is the numerous tax exemptions

given to various sectors of the government like the

senior citizen, PWDS, the power sector and the shipping sector. In the Philippines, the

patronage system saturates all levels of government from the barangay to the national

government. Local leaders need the support of national leaders who control the vast

resources of government especially the national budget. National leaders need the

support of local leaders who have direct influence over local voters. Support can be

directly exchanged for funds allocation as in the case of pork barrel system. With

federalism, there is the promise of consolidating common support functions such as

human capital, financial management and acquisition. Lawmakers have argued that

federalism can further improve the delivery of basic government services. One example

of which is the Doctors in the Barrio program of the government. It is said that under a

federal state of government, there is a greater chance for the health service delivery even

to the remote areas and provinces.

This is one concrete case in the current situation of public health services. Health

services were the biggest and most controversial set of services devolved under the LGC.

There were efforts to recentralize health services because health workers feared that

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health services would not be prioritized by local officials due to low appreciation and lack

of knowledge of and resources for health services.

Health workers also feared that with devolution, they would be at the mercy of

local politicians who would threaten their tenure and benefits. President Fidel Ramos

vetoed the bill recentralizing health services in 1995. But until today, health professionals

and academics complain about the poor state of health services in various localities,

despite some outstanding LGUs with good health programs.

What will happen with health and other public services that will be the

responsibility of federal states in a federal setup? What will happen to health and other

government workers who will now be assigned at the state level? How can the civil service

and bureaucracies at different levels be strengthened to fulfill their mandates without

political interference from local or state elites?

Furthermore, under a federal system, the network of corruption which usually

starts from the national government can be eliminated because the President or the

central government cannot dictate or influence the local government units. With all the

possible benefits of a federal state of government, what is important is it should be fully

understood by people and educate the public how it would affect every aspect of public

administration and governance. Furthermore, federalism provides a constitutional

organization that allows action by a shared government for certain common purposes

while permitting for autonomous action by each level directly responsible to its

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electorate. Federalism also provide a practical way of combining, through representative

institutions, the benefits of unity and diversity, but they are no

remedy for all of humanity’s political ills. The degree to which a federal political system

can be effective will depend upon the extent to which there is acceptance of the need to

respect constitutional norms and structures and upon an emphasis on the spirit of

tolerance and compromise. Its effectiveness is also dependent upon whether the

particular form or variant of federal system that is adopted or evolved gives adequate

expression to the demands and requirements of the particular society in question.

One documented advantage of federalism is that it creates a system of checks and

balances. However, it can also result in frustration and paralysis as implementation of

bold reforms from the central authority or emergency intervention of the central

authority to deal with an urgent situation like disasters or failure of governance in one or

several of the states can be very difficult due to noncooperation of the federal states.

In this current situation in which many key government services are becoming

more and more interconnected, governments at all levels have to be more

interdependent. There is a need for mechanisms under federalism in which there is

coordination and sharing instead of just competition.

In summary, federalism alone will not be able to solve problems related to armed

conflicts, ethnic and cultural diversity, equitable development, efficient delivery of

services and local democracy.

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 If done haphazardly, it can lead to further problems. The process of changing the

Constitution and creating a new layer of government will entail huge costs. Thus,

deliberations must be thorough and participatory.

Framers will have to look at various models of federalism and what other

institutional arrangements can be combined (presidential, semipresidential,

parliamentary, etc.) before deciding which federalism model and institutional

combination would be more appropriate for the Philippines given its own history, political

culture and socioeconomic conditions.

The public should also be involved in information dissemination and public

discussions. A well-informed public, after all, will approve the proposed Charter change.

At the same time, it would be good to focus on a number of other actions that

could complement a federal setup or may even be prioritized before the decision to move

to a federal system can be made.

These can include electoral and party-system reforms to make elections more

competitive and political parties stronger, a freedom of information act, amendments to

the LGC such as reformulating the revenue-sharing scheme, a progressive tax system,

legislation strengthening participatory democracy, more inclusive antipoverty programs,

political dynasty laws, strengthening of institutions and the rule of law

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