REPUBLIC OF THE PH DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR ANI Dus aoc Cr Dae fn HON. EFREN E. PASCUAL, JR. Vice-Governor Province of Bataan | Dear Vice-Governor Pascual: | ‘his has reference to your letter dated 1 the following queries: NNER iPPINES LOCAL GOVERNMENT ue, West Triangle, Quezon Cty DILG Legal Opinion No. 01, S. 2015 12 JAN 2015 July 2014 requesting legal opinion on “lL — Whether or not the”issuance of the Certificates of Affirmation by the NCIP and the Certificate of Ret Director provide sufficient legal bast B. SALONGA as a member of the Sanggunian. Whether or not thé” requirement Sanggunian within ninety (90) days elections on which sector shall be 467 (b) of the Local Government bar. ‘ognition by the DILG Regional is in considering HON. DANILO of a prior determination by the ‘prior to the holding of the local represented, as provided Section ‘ode is applicable in the case at a Whether or not the provision under Section 41 (c) of the Code, which mandates the Commisgjon and regulations to effectively pro representative have been repealed. 4... Whether or not the assumption to 4s, considered to be an ex-officio along with the leagué of local officis 41 (b) of the Local Government Code 5. Whether or not the term of office on Election to promulgate rules ide for the election of sectoral pfice of Hon, Danilo B, Salonga membership in the Sanggunian ils expressly provided under Sec. | ‘Hon. Danilo B. Salonga extends beyond the term of office of the incumbent meinbers of the Sangguniang Panllavigantwho will serv e, until noon of Jane 30, 2016." Per your letter, the National Commission II] issued on 26 February 2014 a Certificate of (hereinafter “Hon. Salonga’) “for having been sele representative or ex-officio member represpntin mn Indigenous Peoples (NCIP)-Region \ffirmation to Hon, Danilo B. Salonga icted and chosen xxx as the mandatory the Indigenous Peoples/Indigenous Cultural Communities in the Sangguniang Panlalawigan of Bataan’.b fon ftrepiomentasientereOn-07AAprily2014;eDILG; Region: IIL-issuet Salonga “for having been affirmed by the Natio} pursuant to Section 16 (b) of NCIP Administrati Certificate of Affirmation to Hon. nal Commission on Indigenous People te Order No. O01, Series of 2009 and as enshrined under Section 467 (b) of the Local Government Gode and Article 93 (a)(1) & @) oF the Rules and Regulations Implementing the Local Government Code as the mandatory representative or eR-officio mi Peoples/Indigenous Cultural Communities (IPT Bataan”. By virtue of the aforesaid Certificates o Salonga took his oath of office Yon 05 May Panlalawigan ng Bataan (LPMR)"befére Hon. Albi Hence, your queries. hber to represent the Indigenous (Cs) in the Sangguniang Panlalawigan of Affirmation and Recognition, Hon. 014 as, “Kinwawan ng Sangguniang It S. Garcia, Governor of Bataan, We shall answer your above-enumerated queries in seriatim. As to the first issue, may we invite your attention to following provisions of NCIP Administrative Order No. 001, series of 2009, Mandatory Representation of Indigenous Peoples states; “SECTION 12, Selection and Assumption t sax ’ Assumption to Office shall take process is formally certified by the con upon recommendation of the Provincial entitled ‘National Guidelines for the in Local Legislative Councils,” which Office. place as soon as the selection trmed NCIP Regional Director, lor Community Service Center head, as.the case may: be, to be in accorlance with this Administrative Order, and .the person chosen gakes t authorized officer’ and informs. the a assumption,” appropriate oath before an sropriate body/ies of his/her “SECTION 16. Duties of the Regional Ofijce. It shall be the task of the Regional Office ta: a. Evaluate the documents and results meritorious, it shall issue a Certiticat of the proceedings; if found of Affirmation (COA) to the selected representative, Otherwise, the same shall be returned to the recommending NCIP Field Office with specific instructions for compliance. b. Submit to DILG for recognition a copy of its issued COA of selected representative including. all documents appurtenant thereto, copy furnished the NCLP Central Office throu and Human Rights (OEHR).” igh the Office of Empowermenta, A formal certification by the conce! recommendation of the Provincial or C| case may be, that the selection pI Administrative Order No. 001, series of b. The IPMR takes the appropriate oath be| ‘The IPMR informs the appropriate pod) d. ‘The NCIP Regional Office issues a Cert the IPMR; med NCIP Regional Director, upon mmunity Service Center head, as the ‘ocess is in accordance with NCIP 1009; fore an authorized officer; es of his/her assumption; ficate of Affirmation (GOA) in favor of €. On the basis of such NCIP issued COA, the DILG-Regional Office issues a Certificate of Recognition in favor of thg IPMR. Aside from COA and Certificate of Re requirements that the IPMR should comply with, Director issues a formal certification regarding thi with NCIP Administrative Order No. 001, series ‘ognition, there are three (3) more amely, the concerned NCIP Regional compliance of the selection process f 2009; take the appropriate oath of office before an authorized officer; and inform the sanggunian about his/her assumption as such. : mop As to your second and third queries, m| y we invite your attention to the following provisions of Republic Act No. 7160 or the Local Government Code of 1991, to wit Section 41 (b) and (¢) of thé Local Government Cade of 1991 ‘SECTION 41. Manner of Election. () The regular members of de sangguniang panlalawigan, Sangguniang. panlungsod, and sanggunian, district, as may be provided for by law. shall be elected at large. The presidents bayan shall be elected by ingguniang barangay members of the leagues of sanggunian members of component citiet and municipalities shall serve as ex-officio members of the sangguniang panlalawigan concerned. The presidents of the liga ng mga barangay and the pederasyon ng mga sangguniang kabataan elected by their respective chapters, as provided in this Code, shall serve as ex-officio members of the.. sanggunian; ‘pantungsod, and sangguniangrbayan, (©) In_addition thereto, there panlalawigan, ‘Sangguniang shall be one (1) sectoral sresentative from the women, one (1) from the workers, and on from any of the following sectors: the urban poor, indigenous cultural communities, disabled persons, or any othet sector as may be determined sanggunian Concerned within ninety of the next local elections, as may be provid. 00) wrior to the holding od for by law. The COMELEGcefaanesky, teh the rules an election of such sectoral representatives.” | | Section 467 of the Local Government Code of 199] “SEC. 457. Composition. (a) The lations to effectively wrovide for the Sangguniang panlatawigan, the legislative body of the province, shall be composed of the provincial vice governor as presiding officer, the regular sanggunian members, the president of the provincial chapter of the liga ng mga barangay, the president of the panlalawigang pederasyo the president of the provincial federation municipalities and component cities, ani members, Bf (6) In addition thereto, ther representatives: one (1) from the women} the sanggunian concerned within ninety the local elections, one (1) from the agi one (1) from thé other sectors, inclu cultural minorities, or disabled persons, (©) The regular members of the sectoral representatives shall be elected for by law.” (Emphasis Supplied) | Based on the foregoing, the Sangguniang P. vice-governor, regular members, the president of ng mga sangguniang Kabataan, of the sanggunian members of the sectoral representatives, as shall be three (3) sectoral and, as shall be determined by )) days prior to the holding of the urban poor, indigenous Va or industrial workers; and jangguniang panlungsod and the the manner as may be provided anlalawigan shall be composed of the the provincial chapter of the liga ng mga barangay, the president of the panlalawigang pederasyon ng mga sangguniang kabataan, the, president of the provincial: feder municipalities and component cities, and the secto! ; nes All the aforementioned positions in the loc: the exception of the sectoral representatives. The yet to pass a law providing for the manner of eled| the local sanggunians as provided under the Government Code of 1991. Meantime, on 29 Qctober 1997, Republic Indigenous Peoples Rights Act of 1997 (hereinafte into law. Said law recognizes the policy of the St communities adequate representations in the local] Precisely, pursuant to Section 6, Rule IV of the I RA 8371, it is mandated that indigenous peoples sh} all levels whose representatives shall be selected traditions of the indigenous people concerned. Al NCIP, which was mandated, by. law to. come uj Regulations, tion of the sanggunian members of al representatives. 1 sanggunains are being filled up with eason for this is that the Gongress has {ing the sectoral representatives in all forequoted provisions of the Local ct No. 8371, otherwise known as the “RA 8371’) was approved and signed te in affording the indigenous people government sanggunians at all levels iplementing Rules and Regulations of jl be represented in all sanggunians at in accordance with the customs and $ng this line, it is noted that it was the with the Implementing Rules and‘The Department has Consistently opined that RA 8371 and its Implementing Rules and Regulations issued by the NCIP are already sufficient as an enabling law to install the indigenous peoples representatives in the different’ Hence, among the different sectors mentio Local Government Code of 1991, only thé'sector o enabling law to install them in the different sang ‘sanggunians of LGUs. jed in Sections 41 (1) and 467 (b) of the ff indigenous cultural minorities has an inians of LGUs. Hence, in reply to your second query, the ryquirement of a prior determination by the Sanggunian within ninety (90) days prior to| which sector shall be represented cannot yet be there is yet no enabling law passed by Congress| them, except in the case of the indigenous cultural As to your third query, insofar as th concerned, Section 41 (c) of the Local Govern amended by RA 8371 when the latter law mandal the Implementing Rules and Regulgtions which NCIP Administrative Order No. 001, series of mechanisms for the mandatory representation of councils. As to your fourth query, this Department the provincial chapter of the liga ng, mgd’ barangay pederasyon ng mga sangguniang Kabataan, the pr the sanggunian members of municipalities and representatives as ex-officio members”. As to your fifth query, Section 11 of NCIP the holding of the local elections on applied as it was already mentioned, providing for the manner of electing minorities. indigenous cultural minorities are went Code of 1991 has already been fed instead the NCIP to come up with he NCIP did when they promulgated 2009 to set up the processes and Indigenous Peoples in local legislative ‘onsistently considers the president of ay, the president of the panlalawigang ¢sident of the provincial federation of component cities, ‘and the sectoral \dministrative Order No. 001, series of 2009 in relation to Section 12 thereof, is instructive, thus: “SECTION 11. Term of and Rem: office of the IPs mandatory representative shall be for a period of three (3) years from and can be re-indorsed for another term by no cise shall the representative serve for terms. For LGUs with mote than one (1 Jurisdiction, all ICCS/IPs tribes in said LGl agreement based on population ratio, or val from Office. The term of in the local legislative councils rhe date of assumption to office 1e JCCS/Ps constituents but in jore than three (3) consecutive [) ICC9Ps residing within its may agree on a term-sharing a whatever local arrangement they may deem suited and applicable to address the cultural peculiarities in that LGU. i era “ t The IPs mandatory’ tepresentative ICCYIPs who selected him/her to the pos local guidelines on recall/removal from offic DILG Opinion No, 20, serieg of 201). yn be replaced anytime by the ition in accordance with theirBased on the aforequoted provision of NCIP Administrative Order No. 001, series of 2009, the term of office of the IPMR shall be for a period of three (3) years. Nowhere can we find in the aforesaid provision that such tetm of office of the IPMR shall be made simultaneous with the term of office of the incumbent members of the local sanggunians. If this is the intent of the NCIP, it could have categorically provided in its issuance. | Such being the case, the term of office of the IPMR shall be for a period of three | (3) years to be reckoned from the date of his/her 4ssumption to office which per Section 12 of NCIP Administrative Order No. 001, series of 2009 “xxx shall take place as soon as the selection process is formally certified by the concerned NCIP Regional Director, upon recommendation of the Provincial or Community Service Center head, as the case may be, to be in accordance with this Administrative rder, and the person chosen takes the appropriate oath before an authorized officer an! informs the appropriate body/ies of his/her assumption.” : Mot We hope to have addressed your concerns skcordingly. wi? Copy furnished: DIR, FLORIDA M, DJAN Dike Region gy Maps, Cy oS Pernanda | Pampenge 7 we ' ; not