BY CRIS DIAZ
CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY: A lawmaker from Cagayan de Oro City urged Congress to approve the proposed five-year term of office for the elected Sangguniang Kabataan (SK) and village officials in October 2023.
The proposal is contained in House Bill No. 7123, filed on Feb. 13, 2023 by Rep. Rufus Rodriguez of Cagayan de Oro City’s Second Congressional District.
Rodriguez said it is unfair for village officials to be elected in October this year to have a shortened tenure of only two years following the Supreme Court ruling that Republic Act No. 11935, which postponed the grassroots polls from Dec. 5, 2022 to Oct. 30, 2023, is unconstitutional.
“Let’s give all of those to be voted this year and succeeding elections a uniform term of office of five years, instead of those to be voted in October having a two-year tenure and those to be elected in 2025 enjoying three years,” he said.
He said that village and SK officers who would win in the Oct. 30, 2023 election should not suffer with the decision of Congress to postpone the Dec. 5 polls, which decision the Supreme Court reversed by declaring RA No. 11935 as unconstitutional.
Rodriguez said that the three-year term “is too short to ensure that the programs of the villages are carried out properly considering that the last year of the term is basically used for campaigning.”
He said that the extended term “would ensure more stability in the village level and ensure that the programs initiated by the incumbent leaders would succeed.”
The proposed five-year measure would amend Section 43 of the Local Government Code, under which village and SK officials enjoy a tenure of three years and a three consecutive term limit, Rodriguez said.
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