LGUs scraping the barrel in fight vs coronavirus

By Joseph B.A. Marzan

 

League of Municipalities (LMP) Iloilo Chapter President and San Enrique town mayor Trixie Fernandez on Saturday warned that the disaster relief funds of local government units (LGU) in the province were “on the verge” of being depleted in their continued fight against the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).

Fernandez told Daily Guardian on Air that almost all LGUs in the province have used up their portions of the Bayanihan Grant to Cities and Municipalities (BGCM), which made them resort to using their Local Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Fund (LDRRMF).

The BGCM was released by the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) in April 2020 as a one-time financial assistance, or a “special” Internal Revenue Allotment (IRA) to cities and municipalities.

This was part of President Rodrigo Duterte’s emergency powers under Section 4 of Republic Act No. 11469 (Bayanihan to Heal as One Act of 2020).

Based on DBM Local Budget Circular No. 125 dated April 7, 2020, Iloilo province received P485,071,111.00.

Fernandez’s town of San Enrique received a BGCM of P9,991,240.00.

The LDRRMF, meanwhile, is a regular fund of 5 percent of the LGUs’ IRA.

The allocation of the local disaster fund is mandated by Section 21 of Republic Act No. 10121 (Philippine Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Fund of 2010).

The mayor added that while they were already using their LDRRMF, they are also setting aside another portion for other calamities.

“The Bayanihan fund, which was sent to us months ago, I believe that almost all LGUs have depleted the Bayanihan funds. We are using our disaster funds already, although we still do set aside in preparation for when storms come so we probably can’t have it run out for COVID-19 purposes,” Fernandez said.

The mayor added further that San Enrique LGU might resort to using their local development funds (LDF) to continue their COVID-19 response measures.

Under Section 287 of Republic Act No. 7160 (Local Government Code of 1991), the LDF is 20 percent of an LGU’s annual IRA that is set aside for development projects.

The DBM and the Department of Interior and Local Government issued Joint Memorandum Circular No. 01 on March 27, 2020, allowing local chief executives to utilize their LDFs for COVID-19 response.

“We are also authorized, and I think the national government issued this months ago, allowing us to re-align 20 percent development fund to be used for [COVID-19] response measures. As far as San Enrique is concerned, we are now on the verge of using our 20 percent development funds. Not all, but a portion of it, because our disaster funds are being depleted,” she further added.

She said that the funds would be used to continue their existing COVID-19 response measures.

“The funds would be for sustaining our LSIs in our quarantine facilities, and also for our infrastructures related to COVID-19, so our funds are not enough. Maybe for the food and other transportation expenses, allowances of our health workers and those guarding, and other supplies, PPEs and other test kits. That’s where our expenses go around. To build infrastructures is heavy at this time. LGUs can’t do it right now,” she said.

In addition to the BGCM, the LDRRMF, and the LDF, LGUs in the province also received assistance from the provincial government for their COVID-19 relief assistance, in three tranches.

The first tranche was a P1-million release in March for each LGU, except for Guimbal town which received P1.5 million.

The second tranche was a pro-rated assistance to the LGUs based on their size and population, released in April.

This was sourced from the annual savings of the Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office since 2016.

San Enrique town received P3.2 million in the second tranche.

The third tranche amounted P1 million per LGU, intended as support for their local quarantine facilities, according to Fernandez.

 

‘FULL CAPACITY’

Fernandez also confirmed that San Enrique’s quarantine facilities (QF) have reached their full capacity on the evening of Friday, September 4, 2020.

The mayor said that this was also due to the continuous repatriation of Locally-Stranded Individuals (LSI), and added that this was also likely the case in other LGUs in the province.

“Actually, right now, we’re almost on the brink. For us in San Enrique, in our town, we are now in full capacity. I was informed last night. There were LSIs still arriving. We are now in full capacity because we follow the 14-day quarantine, and we also prepare to expand our evacuation centers, to construct appropriate quarantine facilities there. We see [to it] that these will last for a long time, there is no clear solution yet to this problem. We are here for the long run, that’s why we are preparing for this. As of now, I can say that almost all QFs of the LGUs are in full capacity,” Fernandez said.

She said that this was why mayors wanted the National Task Force Against COVID-19 (NTF) to reconsider its August 19, 2020 order on the repatriation of Returning Overseas Filipinos (ROF).

Under Section 7.5.2 of the said order, ROFs would be taken by the LGUs directly to their homes, and Section 7.5.3 states that ROFs do not need to undergo local health protocols by the LGUs.

This would mean that ROFs would not need to undergo a 14-day mandatory quarantine when they arrive in their respective hometowns.

She said that this may be an “additional burden” to LGUs that have already been struggling to manage their QFs.

“It is an additional burden to the LGUs to accommodate our ROFs. It adds to our quarantine facilities. But it will ensure the safety of our community, of our families, and the household that they will come home to. It’s better that we take this burden instead of compromising the family or the community. We know, for how many months of working this out, the spending, the hardships of our LGUs to contain the spread of the virus, and it will just be put to waste. That is why the stand of the LMP is to exert all measures to protect our community, our people, especially now that in most towns, there are now local transmissions and that is also something being contained by the mayors, the local transmission in which we don’t know the sources of the virus,” she said.

Fernandez told Daily Guardian on Thursday that the LMP will be issuing a resolution asking the NTF to reconsider the provisions of the order on the non-requirement of mandatory quarantine.