(Government side)

What is federalism?

The term “federalism” has been the talk of the town since the new president introduced it to the Filipino
people. It might a breath of fresh air to us but it is in the contrary to some of our neighboring states. In
this speech, I will be giving everyone a brief overview of what is federalism and why should it be
approved in the Philippines.

Federalism is the process by which two or more governments share powers over the same geographic
area. A system of government that divides power between a political units and a central authority. A
system of government in which the same territory is controlled by two levels of government. Generally,
an overarching national government is responsible for broader governance of larger territorial areas,
while the smaller subdivisions, states, and cities govern the issues of local concern. Moreover, it is the
type of government in which the power is divided between the national government and other
governmental units. It contrasts with a unitary government, in which a central authority holds the
power, and a confederation, in which states, for example, are clearly dominant.

Arguments for the Government

Currently, the Philippines operates under a unitary form of government – which means that there is a
central government which is the highest governing power. In addition, the Constitution guarantees that
the State shall ensure autonomy of local governments. With this, Congress enacted R.A. 7160 or the Local
Government Code of 1991. The Local Government Code of 1991 is the enabling law that transferred
power, authority, and responsibility over certain governmental functions from the national (central) to
local government units. It provided the framework of decentralizing and delegating powers to the local
government units in the discharge of their official functions. Thus, almost all of the powers and
governance is designated in one centralized government.

Applying federalism, it would definitely benefit the Philippines considering its geographic profile. The
Philippines is an archipelago which is a cluster of islands scattered in a body of water. These characteristic
of the Philippines posed a challenge in the delivery of goods. With federalism, each region, turned into
federal states, will be have more powers in their disposal in addressing local concerns. In other words,
federalism will provide decentralization a portion of its powers to the federal states in addressing their
concerns with less dependence to the national government for their action.

In connection with the first point, another essential aspect of federalism is the revenue and profit sharing.
Currently, revenue and profit of each region will go to the centralized government; from there, the budget
is distributed back to each region based on the amount prescribed by law. In federalism, the Philippines
will be divided into different states. Each state will maintain 80% of their profit and funds and while the
20% will go to the Federal National Government. From 80% of each state, the 30% will go to the local state
government and 70% to the province, cities, municipalities, and barangays. In other words, the federal
states will have bigger shares of the national and regional tax revenues resulting in the faster economic
development of the regions.

Another aspect of federalism is that each state will have their own set of senators and representatives.
The legislative powers will be divided between the national federal government and local state
government. In other words, the federal government is responsible in the military and protection of the
country, while the local state government will be responsible of their own state wherein each government
has more control in their projects, budget, and in the passing of laws.

In summary, federalism provides the decentralization of power and authority. Bureaucratic delay
and red tape will be shortened as the needed approvals from the central office in Manila will no longer
be needed as most permits and clearances will be done in the regions. The flattening of the organizational
structure, if truly implemented is a good management initiative and brings the government closer to the
public. Another good effect is the expected faster economic development of the regions and federalism
might be able to address the local autonomy desires of Muslim Mindanao and of the communist’s National
Democratic Front. Further, trust in the government is very important to make federalism successful, and
the transition provisions could erode government credibility. It is also good to revisit the experiences of
successful federal governments, and that a lot of them were strong independent states that federated to
enlarge and coordinate markets and their economies and increase their international influence. There is
also a need for a “Plan B.” If federalism does not get approved, the objective of more local autonomy and
decentralization can still be achieved by improving and amending the Local Government Code.
Downloading more power and authority to the provincial, city and municipal governments has always
been welcomed by the local officials.

Questions:

1. Can Filipinos benefit from federalism?

2. Are we ready for a shift to a federal government?

(NEGATIVE)

Arguments for the Negative Side

Federalism seems well suited in the Philippines since we were already divided into regions before. In
reality, however, it could be a recipe for disaster in a country that is already divided by language, religions,
and economic inequality. Only a few regions are capable of raising enough taxes on their own. The
majority of provinces in our country such as Zamboanga and Sulu which will be submerged into new
federal states lack the basic administrative capacity for generating revenue.

Federalism is an expensive and uneconomical system because there is duplication of the works. This
increases the expenditure and results in wastage of time and energy. So it is not suitable for small and or
states. Second, the method of distribution of powers cannot be perfect for all times. What is of local
importance today may become a matter of national importance tomorrow. But unless the constitution is
amended, which is something very difficult to do, the matter cannot be resolved. The Philippine Institute
for Development Studies (PIDS) puts the additional cost in the range of P44-72 billion, not even
counting changes in the judiciary, if there is a shift to a federal system.

Federalism will strengthen political dynasties in the regional governments, perpetrate themselves in
power and amass vast wealth through corruption. Political dynasties have been a perennial and
inherited problem of the Philippines since the Spanish era. By implementing federalism, it would only
bolster the dynasties in each region to perpetuate themselves in the position in furtherance of their
private interest.
Federalism will make the poor poorer because they will be burdened with taxes of all kinds to support
and maintain the federal central government and regional governments. The principle of federalism –
local autonomy, subsidiarity and decentralization– are already in the 1987 Constitution; what needs to
be done is to operationalize these principles of federalism. Lastly, the unitary system has carried this
nation through tests of fire: the Filipino – American War (1898-1902), World War II against Japan (1941-
1944), rebellion, coup attempts and war in Marawi.

The possible weakened central authority may make it difficult for the national government to deal with
global/foreign policy issues and military matters. Even with the provisions on centralized military,
monetary/banking, and foreign policies, international perception will matter if the regional states become
more aggressive and powerful. There is also the governance capability/capacity of the regional
governments which will make it difficult and costly to operate the bureaucracy and implement projects.
Then, there is the additional cost and expenses of creating the regional offices both in terms of physical
offices and additional officers and employees. It will probably double the current National Budget to over
P3 trillion which will increase the budget deficit beyond the five percent of GDP limit

In conclusion, it is now the task of national leadership to amend the existing dysfunctional system to
correct itself—one small step at a time—to serve the needs and aspirations of our evolving nation.
Federalism is a movement that is too abrupt and premature to be implemented in the Philippines. It
would take multitude of studies and tests in order for it to called suited for the Philippines.

Questions:

However, we would like to light up a question today. Is federalism here to make an equal society? We
believe not. Can federalism actually make our nation or society equal? We believe not. So we are here
once again to strongly argue that the government should not condone federalism in our country.