END of September: That’s the inextendible deadline for the Senate to approve Senate Bill 2387, which proposes to fix the tenure of barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan (SK) officials to five years instead of the current four-year term.
Sen. Francis Escudero, at the same time, exhorted his colleagues to act forthwith on the measure, which impacts the November barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan elections.
Delivering his sponsorship speech on the measure under Committee Report 77, Escudero said the Senate must act forthwith on the proposal before the end of September to ensure predictability in the conduct of the upcoming Barangay and SK Elections (BSKE) scheduled in November.
He noted that the filing of certificates of candidacy is already set for next month, underscoring the need for Congress to decide promptly whether the elections will proceed or be reset under the new term structure.
‘Mr. President, I ask that the body act on this bill with urgency for or against it, before the end of September, given the fact that the Barangay Elections is scheduled to be conducted this November and the filing of Certificates of Candidacy are slated already in the coming month,’ Escudero said.
‘Although I favor this measure, I hope this body will give priority to this measure so that we can decide on it and so that there will be predictability with respect to the coming elections-whether indeed it will push through or will be postponed in accordance with the new term that will be approved by Congress, should I decide in its wisdom,’ he added.
The Constitution empowers the Congress to determine the term of barangay officials, a policy judgment affirmed by the Supreme Court in Macalintal v. Senate, Escudero added. He noted that the Court recognized the need to balance continuity against accountability, and administrative efficiency against democratic change.
‘That is the policy judgment which the present measure asks us to consider-whether, as a matter of policy, a five-year term provides a better governing window than the four years presently provided by law,’ he also said.
Escudero argued that a five year term provides a better governing window than the current four years, allowing barangay and SK officials sufficient time to organize, implement, and evaluate programs without the disruption of frequent elections.
‘Barangays are planners, implementers, first responders, peacekeepers, conciliators, and frontline service providers – all at a scale where government knows the family, the street, and often the problem by name,’ he said.
He added that the proposal is not unprecedented, citing past laws, namely Republic Acts 6653 and 8524 that also prescribed five year terms for barangay officials. ‘This bill is a termsetting measure, enacted in the exercise of the power expressly conferred upon Congress by Article X, Section 8 of the Constitution,’ Escudero pointed out.
Committee Report 77, jointly prepared by the Committees on Local Government and of Finance, has recommended the approval of SB 2387 with amendments, taking into consideration SB 2067 filed by Sen. Imelda Josefa Remedios Marcos.
At Monday’s committee hearing presided over by Escudero, multisectoral representatives expressed strong support for the five-year-term. The Liga ng mga Barangay, the National Citizens’ Movement for Free Elections (Namfrel), the Parish Pastoral Council for Responsible Voting (PPCRV), and the National Youth Commission (NYC) all backed the measure, stressing that a longer term would institutionalize stability and break the cycle of frequent postponements.