(Fourth Part)

THE social burdens imposed by massive industrialization and commercialization on the environment coupled with the rise in population are not only taking a toll on local government functionaries but also on its financial resources.

At present, public health spending is continuously bleeding the city's coffer dry at the expense of other equally important governmental concerns.

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However, the negative social impacts of the prevailing socio-economic trends on public health can still be neutralized, if not contained.

They can still be counterposed by the formulation and eventual enforcement of a uniform, effective and responsive public health and welfare policies and programs.

What is only needed is for the city government to intensify, consolidate and collectivize efforts to keep its public health policies and programs at pace with speedily changing realities.

More than ever, the City Government has all the reasons to do this. It must rise above the injustice that it suffered, resulting from grievous flaws in the devolution of power from the national government to the local government as mandated by the LGC. There is no more hope for the National Oversight Committee (NOC) on Government Devolution to convene in order to iron out some major kinks in connection with the devolution of power, functions, responsibilities and resources from the national government to the local government immediately after the effectivity and enforceability of the same code.

At this juncture, allow us to lay down the predicate for our clearer understanding of this nagging question. It can be recalled that, in 1992, the NOC, composed of the representatives of concerned departments and agencies of the national government, was created to preside over the transfer of substantial governmental powers, functions and responsibilities from various national government agencies to all LGUs.

The main logic for this transfer is to reconstruct the country's highly centralized governmental structure by facilitating its smooth transition to a decentralized governmental system founded on the principle of local autonomy.

Decentralization has to major dimensions: one, transfer of power; and two, transfer of financial resources. It is supposed to go through four modes: devolution (transfer of political power); deconcentration (transfer of administrative power); debureaucratization (allowing non-government entities to discharge certain governmental functions); and democratization (making public consultation mandatory and allowing NGOs/POs to be part of local government decision-making mechanisms).

In sum, the main purpose of decentralization is to reenergize local government bureaucracies and other key development forces in order to usher the era of genuine development in the localities and in basic communities all throughout the country.

This promise has been betrayed in many ways. The failure of the NOC to perform its mandated tasks plunges the city government, together with other LGUs similarly situated, into an unjust situation wherein the primordial functions and responsibilities of many national government agencies (NGAs) are transferred under its care, but minus the funds necessary in the effective discharge of such functions and responsibilities.

The General Santos City Hospital (GSCH) is one concrete example. What were transferred to the city government are merely governmental responsibilities and functions. The resources necessary for the running of the hospital were retained by the Department of Health (DOH). This is unjust. Devolution means transfer of both powers and resources.

The argument that funds for the operation of the devolved hospital are chargeable against the Internal Revenue Allotment (IRA) of the local government is of no moment. The concept of this, as originally framed by the author of the code, is that funds allocated by the DOH for the operation of public hospitals should also be transferred and should be treated separately and distinctively from IRA; otherwise, a grave injustice is perpetrated against host LGUs. This concept was brought to the fore during the assessment forum on the enforcement of the LGC in UP-Cebu, held in time for its 10th year anniversary in 2002.

(For comments: Email bsumogoy@yahoo.com; Blog site: bensumogoy.wordpress.com).

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(October 20, 2008 issue)
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