Robredo vows to implement Mandanas ruling if she wins the presidency (Sabong News)

GENERAL SANTOS CITY— Should she win in the May 9 elections, Vice President Leni Robredo will fully implement the Mandanas ruling, which will allocate a bigger chunk of the national government’s tax collection to local government units (LGUs). During her people’s rally here in front of thousands of supporters, the Vice President promised support for the LGUs to get a bigger share of the budget to combat peace and order issues. She said she will push for a “whole-of-nation approach” against terrorism, violent extremism, and insurgency. “Hindi lang tutugusin ang (Will not only eliminate) lawless elements, tututukan po natin ang kahirapan, kalusugan, edukasyon, kabuhayan, at katarungan (we will focus in poverty, health, education, livelihood, and justice),” Robredo told a cheering crowd on Tuesday, March 15. To do this, she will ensure the adherence to the Mandanas ruling, which was affirmed by the Supreme Court and poised to take effect this year. The ruling was named after Batangas Governor Hermilando Mandanas, who challenged the national government’s position that LGUs were entitled to a smaller share of the tax collections. Aside from the transfer of basic services to the LGUs by 2024, the Mandanas ruling will also shift some P234.4 billion worth of programs and projects to local governments. “Yung pondong nakalaan sa komunidad maibaba agad at nagagamit sa mga programang kinakailangan (The fund allocated for the community will be sent immediately and used for needed programs),” Robredo assured her supporters packed in the Plaza Oval here. The Vice President, the lone female presidential candidate among 10 contenders, is a firm believer of empowering local governments, down to the smallest unit of the barangay. She also earlier swore to bring back the bottom-up budgeting (BUB) scheme to prioritize LGU projects. READ: The scheme started during the time of her husband, the late former Interior secretary Jesse Robredo, who also institutionalized a participatory form of governance in their hometown of Naga City when he was mayor there for almost two decades.