Atty. Joey Lina
In my Teleradyo program Sagot Ko ‘Yan last Sunday, I had an interesting discussion with Marinduque Governor Presbitero Velasco Jr., national chairman of the Union of Local Authorities of the Philippines (ULAP), and he shared some remarkable revelations of great impact to local government units.
First, plans are in the offing to launch a People’s Initiative seeking to amend the 1985 Constitution that would give LGUs an additional 10 percent, or “a share of at least 50 percent in the national taxes automatically released” instead of the current share of 40 percent as specified in RA 7160 or the Local Government Code of 1991.
By JOVILAND RITA, GMA News
Published January 17, 2021 12:41pm
Gov. Dakila Cua (PIA photo) Target vaccine beneficiaries who refuse government s inoculation drive against COVID-19 will be excluded from priority list, the chairperson of the Union of Local Authorities of the Philippines (ULAP) said on Sunday. ULAP chairperson and Quirino Governor Dakila Cua told Super Radyo dzBB on Sunday that local governments are finalizing the priority list of target recipients. “Kailangan natin malaman, ito bang si Mr. Juan Dela Cruz, gusto ba niyang magpabakuna o hindi. Priority nga siya, pero minsan ayaw naman niya,” he said. “So, kailangan natin linisin pa yung mga listahan. At dyan, napakalaking trabaho pa,” he added.
By DONA MAGSINO, GMA News
Published January 15, 2021 9:01pm The League of Provinces is assisting provincial governments in the country to secure COVID-19 vaccines for their constituents through a tripartite agreement with the national government and manufacturers, its head Marinduque Governor Presbitero Velasco Jr. said Friday. We sent a survey form to all the governors to indicate how much money they want to allocate for the vaccines that we can purchase for them and at the same time we requested them to state the vaccine which they prefer, Velasco said in a Senate hearing on the government s COVID-19 immunization program. Per agreement with the National Task Force, with Secretary Charlie Galvez and Secretary [Francisco] Duque, we will collate all these things and then we will go into a tripartite agreement, he added.
By ERWIN COLCOL, GMA News
Published January 14, 2021 5:35pm The House of Representatives will conduct its own inquiry into the national government s COVID-19 vaccination program on Monday, January 18. The virtual hearing will be led by the House Committee on Health, headed by Quezon Representative Angelina Helen Tan, with invited resource persons involved in the vaccine procurement including Health Secretary Francisco Duque III and vaccine czar Carlito Galvez Jr. “There have been a lot of differing opinions, mostly from non-medical experts, regarding government-procured vaccines,” Tan said in a statement. “As such, we would like to hear from the experts themselves to determine facts and figures from a scientific point of view, she added.
President Rodrigo Roa Duterte administers the oath of office of Benjamin Abalos Jr. as the new chairman of the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority at the Malacañang Palace on January 11, 2021. SIMEON CELI/ PRESIDENTIAL PHOTO
MANILA – Former Mandaluyong City Mayor Benhur Abalos took his oath before President Rodrigo Duterte on Monday as the new chairman of the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA).
Abalos served as mayor for 15 years, from 1998 to 2004 and from 2007 to 2016, and as the city’s lone representative in Congress from 2004 to 2007. Abalos will now face his new challenge as the chairman of MMDA, a position that his father, Benjamin Sr., also held from 2001 to 2002.