PURPOSE AND FUNCTION REVISITED

December 9, 2023 Opinion

To those Barangay officials who have served for quite a number of years, either finishing their three terms of nine years as an elective official or by virtue of enjoying the benefit of an extended term thru the issuance of a law, they would surely be intimately familiar with their organization the Liga ng mga Barangay (LnB).

Delving into how the LnB came into being, and why it is named that way we find that before the enactment of Republic Act 7160 otherwise known as the Local Government Code of 1991 as amended, the LnB was known by many other names such as the Barrio Lieutenants’ Association of the Philippines, the Association of Barangay Councils, and the Pambansang Katipunan ng mga Barangay.

It only became known as the Liga ng mga Barangay when the Local Government Code of 1991 became a law. While the LnB is considered an association of the various barangay councils it owes its latest existence and transformation thru the Local Government Code of 1991 which states in Section 491 thereof, “Purpose of Organization.

There shall be an organization of all barangays to be known as the liga ng mga barangay for the primary purpose of determining the representation of the Liga in the sanggunians, and for ventilating, articulating and crystallizing issues affecting barangay government administration
and securing, through proper and legal means, solutions thereto.”

The abovementioned provision of R.A. 7160 specifically cites the purpose why there is an organization called the Liga ng mga Barangay and that is to select someone from among its members to represent and advance their interests as Barangay officials in the legislative bodies of local government units (LGUs’) in the country.

But is that the only purpose why the LnB was created and organized? If we look carefully into the
provision of the Local Government Code that created the LnB we also discover that there is in fact a second purpose for why the said organization was established and that is for the ventilation,
articulation and crystallization of issues that affect the administration of a barangay government and obtaining appropriate solutions for these concerns.

Furthermore since the LnB is an organization it is manned not only by its selected representative to the legislative bodies but also by other officers called board members who likewise exercise the
powers, functions and duties of the organization for the welfare of its members. In Section 495 of the Local Government Code of 1991 it states the following: Powers, Functions and Duties of the
Liga.

The liga shall: (a) Give priority to programs designed for the total development of the barangays and in consonance with the policies, programs and projects of the national government; (b) Assist in the education of barangay residents for people’s participation in local government administration in order to promote united and concerted action to achieve country-wide development goals; (c) Supplement the efforts of government in creating gainful employment within the barangay; (d) Adopt measures to promote the welfare of barangay officials; (e) Serve
as a forum of the barangays in order to forge linkages with government and nongovernmental organizations and thereby promote the social, economic and political wellbeing of the barangays; and (f) Exercise such other powers and perform such other duties and functions which will bring about stronger ties between barangays and promote the welfare of the barangay inhabitants.

So the LnB, far from being just a pedestal from which to catapult into the legislative arena its chosen representative also serves to realize its mandate of prioritizing programs for the total development of barangays, establish measures that would promote the welfare of its members, lend assistance in educating residents in the community regarding people’s participation in local
government administration towards a unified action in achieving the country’s development goals, augment efforts by the government in providing gainful employment within the communities, provide a platform for barangays in establishing linkages with the public and private sector and
thus advance the welfare of the barangays, and serve as a catalyst to build stronger ties between barangays and thus promote the inhabitants’ welfare.

Here we are already certain that the LnB also has various other functions, as well as duties as an organization, and therefore must actively commit itself to realizing its full potential. Finally, whoever will sit in the LnB either as president, vice president, auditor or members of the board, they must actively pursue the realization of the mandates enunciated in the creation of the said organization.