Further study needed on proposed barangay merging – TWG

Members of the city government’s technical working group (TWG) tasked to analyze the cost-benefit impact of the proposed barangay merging from 128 to 33 asked for more time to resolve more issues as they crop-up.

During the recent meeting of the TWG on Barangay Amalgamation, Thursday, 19 January 2023, City Assessor Ma. Almaya Addawe reported that one barangay in the proposed 33 clustered units failed to meet the minimum 5,000 inhabitants as required by the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG).

“This particular clustered barangay comprises barangays in the central business district; therefore, we need to restudy our clustering to meet provisions of the local government code,” Almaya said.

The city assessor said location of public facilities will also be considered in the merging of barangays to ensure accessibility of services.

Another issue discussed was the probable decrease in the National Tax Allotment (NTA) of the clustered barangays following national budgeting rules on tax shares as a result of the decrease in the number of barangays from 128 to 33.

Supervising Administrative Officer Faye Almazan of the City Budget Office said that the 128 barangays of the city received a total of P624 million NTA for 2022 divided in percentages set by the Department of Budget and Management per population count.

However, Almazan said the barangay NTA is projected to decrease by 29.16 percent or P442M total NTA if the proposed 33 merged barangays push through following DBM rules.

“The decrease in barangay NTA will also result in the decrease in the development fund as well as the barangay disaster risk reduction and management fund,” Almazan explained.

The TWG also agreed to study further the cost-benefit impact of barangay merging on personal services with the reduction in the number of officials to be elected while considering other funding sources towards the goal of achieving smart city barangays.

The city is pursuing the barangay amalgamation project to comply with provisions of the local government code under the guidance of the DILG with the goal of improving local governance and to professionalize the salaries of barangay officials. – JMPS