Cordillera Autonomy: a key to a progressive Cordillera Administrative Region?
Posted on | Friday, 25 March 2011 | 2 Comments
By Jun Pitas
The quest of the autonomous status of the Cordillera Administrative Region is once again pushed as pro-autonomy leaders of the region believe autonomy the key to a more progressive Cordillera Administrative Region.
The first time the community leaders pushed for the drafting of the organic act was as early as 1990. In a plebiscite held on Jan. 30 of the same year, the Cordillerans rejected RA 6766 which was supposed to be, if approved, will lead to the creation of the autonomous Cordillera. Unfortunately, only the province of Ifugao gave a positive response.
After eight years of its first rejection, another plebiscite was conducted and once again, only one province accepted the organic act but this time, the province of Apayao.
As ruled by the Supreme Court, there must be at least two of seven provinces and a city of the region should agree to form an autonomous status.
In a survey conducted by the Regional Development Council (RDC) in 2007, 64 percent of the respondents were unaware of the provisions of regional autonomy. Also, 40 percent do not know if the region is ready for autonomous status while 30 percent say the region is not ready for autonomy. Ask should be there a third voting for the Cordillera Autonomous Region tomorrow, 66 percent are undecided.
Baguio city mayor Mauricio Domogan, in the series of public consultations in the city and around in the provinces, says the best way to explain autonomy is that existing powers and benefits the region is getting from the national government will be maintained further once autonomy is achieved.
The five principles are:
The quest of the autonomous status of the Cordillera Administrative Region is once again pushed as pro-autonomy leaders of the region believe autonomy the key to a more progressive Cordillera Administrative Region.
The first time the community leaders pushed for the drafting of the organic act was as early as 1990. In a plebiscite held on Jan. 30 of the same year, the Cordillerans rejected RA 6766 which was supposed to be, if approved, will lead to the creation of the autonomous Cordillera. Unfortunately, only the province of Ifugao gave a positive response.
After eight years of its first rejection, another plebiscite was conducted and once again, only one province accepted the organic act but this time, the province of Apayao.
As ruled by the Supreme Court, there must be at least two of seven provinces and a city of the region should agree to form an autonomous status.
In a survey conducted by the Regional Development Council (RDC) in 2007, 64 percent of the respondents were unaware of the provisions of regional autonomy. Also, 40 percent do not know if the region is ready for autonomous status while 30 percent say the region is not ready for autonomy. Ask should be there a third voting for the Cordillera Autonomous Region tomorrow, 66 percent are undecided.
Baguio city mayor Mauricio Domogan, in the series of public consultations in the city and around in the provinces, says the best way to explain autonomy is that existing powers and benefits the region is getting from the national government will be maintained further once autonomy is achieved.
The five principles are:
1) Permanent regional identity where the term Cordillerans shall apply to all Filipino citizens who are domiciled within the territory of the CAR;
2) The powers and benefits of the region, including the different units within it, shall not be diminished;
3) Nationally paid officials and employees will continue to be nationally paid and the budgetary needs of the regional agencies where they belong shall continue to be provided by the national government;
4) Mandate the national government, under the Autonomy law to provide subsidy for the first ten years of the Cordilera Autonomous Region over and above the internal revenue allotment and other existing benefits that are being enjoyed by the local government units; and
5) After the period of subsidy, the national government shall continue to provide sufficient budgetary allocation to the region in order to ensure its financial stability and sustenance.
The powers to be developed after the enforcement of autonomy are:
1. Administrative organization; 2. Creation of sources revenue; 3. Ancestral domain and natural resources; 4. Personal, family, and property relations; 5. Regional, urban, and rural planning development; 6. Economic, social, and tourism development; 7. Educational policies; 8. Preservation and development of the cultural heritage; 9. Powers, functions, and responsibilities now being exercised by the departments of the national government, except with respect to certain areas such as national security, postal management, foreign affairs, postal service, coinage and fiscal and monetary policies, quarantine, customs and tariffs, citizenship, naturalization, immigration and deportation, general auditing, civil service and elections and foreign trade.
In a consultation held in Mt. Province lately last year, the Indigenous People raised a fearsome issue, “is the Ampatuan case a failure of Autonomy?”
Franklin Odsey, chairman on Regional Development and Autonomy says, “The abuse of powers by the Ampatuans did not come about because of regional autonomy. It came about because of several factors like the history in warlordism in Muslim Mindanao, the coddling by the national government of the Ampatuan, and lack of an empowered citizenry to stop an abusive politician.”
As inhabitants of the Cordillera Administrative Region, when will we fully understand the provisions of autonomy? As the third organic act is drafted and will be presented to the congress on May this year, will we finally accept it and approve once a plebiscite is conducted in our region? Long live the Cordillera Region!!!
Source : http://www.cordillera.gov.ph/
Category:
opinion
6 June 2011 at 01:32
Perhaps the gist of the entire autonomy issue in a nutshell is that Cordillera's resources would benefit the people of this region, instead of an oligarchic few in Manila, private corporate interests, and the quasi neocolonialism of international economically predatory groups such as the G8 nations. They have bled the lifeblood out of the poor of the Cordilleras dry for the longest time. Lets praise our regional leaders for this outstanding initiative!
Jorge Macapugay, EVP
Upward Bound Banaue
Banaue, Ifugao
17 June 2011 at 13:43
To help our beloved CAR leaders in our Organic Act efforts:
http://sites.google.com/site/cordillerapatriot
Jorge Macapugay, EVP
UBB
Banaue, Ifugao