President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. signed into law a measure fixing the term of office of Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan officials to five years, allowing incumbent officers to continue serving the public and working for their communities.
Republic Act No. 12326, or an ‘Act Fixing the Term of Office of Barangay Officials and Members of the Sangguniang Kabataan to Five (5) years, amends RA No. 12232, which set the term at four years.
Under the new law, no elective barangay official shall serve for more than two consecutive terms in the same position and no elective SK official shall serve for more than one term in the same position.
R.A. No. 12326 also set the next regular barangay and SK elections to be held on the second Monday of November 2028 and every five years thereafter.
With term extension, ‘incumbent elective barangay officials shall be regarded as having completed one term in their respective positions.’
This makes incumbent officials serving their last term in the same position ineligible to run for the same position in the November 2028 Barangay and SK elections.
As to the limitation during the transition period, the new law states that incumbent officials are not exempted from pending and future investigations concerning administrative, civil, or criminal cases or liabilities against them, and their consequences during such incumbency.
Vacancies in the SK membership occuring prior to the election shall be filled through the appointment by the city or municipal mayor with jurisdiction over the barangay of the concerned SK. Appointees must meet the qualifications sey forth under Section 10 of the Sangguniang Kabataan Reform Act of 2015.
The measure also added a new Section 4-B, to institutionalize continuing training and capacity-building programs for barangay officials and SK members to strengthen their capacity to perform their duties and responsibilities.
The Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) will spearhead the trainings, in coordination with the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA), Commission on Elections (COMELEC), state universities and colleges (SUCs), and other appropriate government agencies.
R.A. No. 12326 takes effect immediately after its publication in the Official Gazette or in a newspaper of general circulation.