Cadiz City Mayor and United Negros Alliance secretary-general Salvador Escalante Jr. said he is supporting the proposal to extend the term of office of the barangay officials who won in the recent elections.
The proposal is that barangay officials will be in office for five years, with another reelection for a total of 10 years.
This will make them do their job well and implement the projects for their constituents, Escalante said.
At present, barangay officials have three year terms with two reelections, or a total of nine years like the local officials.
Escalante said the recently concluded barangay election has become too costly also for the candidates.
Cagayan de Oro City 2nd District Rep. Rufus Rodriguez last week urged the House committee on local government to endorse his proposal for a five-year term of office for barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan (SK) officers as contained in House Bill No. 7123 that he filed last February.
Rodriguez said it would not be fair 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.
He also said barangay and SK officials who won in the Oct. 30 election “should not suffer for the decision of Congress” to postpone the Dec. 5 polls.*