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Also, the matters contained in the following were written in accordance with the law, rules, and jurisprudence prevailing at the time of writing and posting, and do not include any future developments on the subject matter under discussion.
AT A GLANCE
A local government unit (LGU) may be created, divided, merged, and consolidated, abolished or its boundaries otherwise substantially altered by:
(1) a law enacted by Congress in case of provinces, cities, municipalities, or any other political subdivisions; or
(2) an ordinance passed by the Sangguniang Panlalawigan or Sangguniang Panlungsod concerned in the case of any barangay within its territorial jurisdiction. (Section 6, Local Government Code)
Creation and Conversion of LGUs
The creation of local government units is governed by Section 10, Article X of the Constitution.
The law says:
“No province, city, municipality, or barangay may be created, divided, merged, abolished or its boundaries substantially altered, except in accordance with the criteria established in the Local Government Code and subject to approval by a majority of the votes cast in a plebiscite called for the purpose in the political unit or units directly affected.” (Section 10, Article X of the 1987 Constitution)
Thus, the creation of any of the four local government units – province, city, municipality or barangay – must comply with three conditions. First, the creation of a local government unit must follow the criteria fixed in the Local Government Code. Second, such creation must not conflict with any provision of the Constitution. Third, there must be a plebiscite in the political units affected.
A local government unit (LGU) may be created, divided, merged, and consolidated, abolished or its boundaries otherwise substantially altered by: (1) a law enacted by Congress in case of provinces, cities, municipalities, or any other political subdivisions; or (2) an ordinance passed by the Sangguniang Panlalawigan or Sangguniang Panlungsod concerned in the case of any barangay within its territorial jurisdiction. (Section 6, Local Government Code)
Jurisprudence says:
The High Court ruled in the case of Pelaez v. Auditor General (G.R. No. L-23825, December 24, 1965) that “the authority to create municipal corporations is essentially legislative in nature.” This means that the executive orders (EOs) which created municipalities in the past are null and void.
Requisites for Creation of an LGU
Under Section 7 of the Local Government Code, the creation of a local government unit or a conversion from one level to another shall be based on (1) verifiable indicators of viability; and (2) projected capacity to provide services.
The law says:
“As a general rule, the creation of a local government unit or its conversion from one level to another level shall be based on verifiable indicators of viability and projected capacity to provide services, to wit:
(a) Income. – It must be sufficient, based on acceptable standards, to provide for all essential government facilities and services and special functions commensurate with the size of its population, as expected of the local government unit concerned;
(b) Population. – It shall be determined as the total number of inhabitants within the territorial jurisdiction of the local government unit concerned; and
(c) Land Area. – It must be contiguous, unless it comprises two or more islands or is separated by a local government unit independent of the others; properly identified by metes and bounds with technical descriptions; and sufficient to provide for such basic services and facilities to meet the requirements of its populace. Compliance with the foregoing indicators shall be attested to by the Department of Finance (DOF), the National Statistics Office (NSO), and the Lands Management Bureau (LMB) of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR).” (Section 6, Local Government Code)
The Philippine Statistics Authority, as created by Republic Act No. 10625, together with the Land Management Bureau of the DENR and the Department of Finance, now has the power and duty to attest to the compliance of the above-mentioned indicators.
Is it actually necessary that the territory of a newly-created LGU be identified in exact metes and bounds?
Jurisprudence says:
No. “The requirement that the territory of newly-created LGUs be identified by metes and bounds is intended to provide the means by which the area of the LGUs may be reasonably ascertained. As long as the territorial jurisdiction may be reasonably ascertained by referring to common boundaries with neighboring municipalities, then the legislative intent has been sufficiently served.” (Mariano v. COMELEC, G.R. No. 118577, March 7, 1995)
Question: Congress delegated the power to create legislative districts for the House of Representatives to the Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao Regional Assembly. Can the Congress validly do so?
Answer: No, Congress cannot validly delegate to the ARMM Regional Assembly the power to create legislative districts since the power to increase the allowable membership in the House of Representatives and the power to reapportion legislative districts are vested exclusively in Congress.
The power to create or reapportion legislative districts cannot be delegated by Congress but must be exercised by Congress itself. As such, its power to create LGUs is limited to the creation of municipalities and barangays as the power to create a province or city inherently involves the power to create legislative districts. (Sema v. COMELEC, G.R. No. 177597, July 16, 2008)
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