The impending implementation of the so-called "Mandanas-Garcia ruling" will result to the rollout of more agriculture and fishery programs at the local government unit (LGU) level, the Department of Agriculture (DA) said.

DA Secretary William Dar said that through the ruling, the national government would be able to funnel more funds to LGUs starting next year.

“This favorable development has long been awaited by our LGUs. With more financial resources, the provincial governments, in particular, can significantly boost the delivery of devolved functions and better perform their role as the country’s ‘food security czars’,” Dar said.

The Mandanas-Garcia ruling is expected to increase the Internal Revenue Allotment (IRA) of LGUs by P234.4 billion to P1.8 trillion beginning in 2022. This is 27.6 percent more than the IRA of previous years, according to the Department of Budget and Management (DBM).

Under the ruling, LGUs can spend their IRA on infrastructure, agriculture, social welfare, health care, and livelihood, among other sectors, as listed in the Local Government Code of 1991.

Batangas Governor Hermilando Mandanas, the lead petitioner in the case that the Supreme Court (SC) gave its nod to in July 2018, said the additional IRA will enable them to fully implement the Province-Led Agriculture & Fisheries Extension Systems (PAFES) in partnership with the DA.

Mandanas said the PAFES will pave the way for the crafting of a food security program that will benefit farmers, fishers, rural folk, and agri-fishery industry stakeholders.

“I am certain that with the adoption of the PAFES concept, which is essentially the integration of the necessary services on the provincial level, we can effectively, efficiently, and economically promote a food security program that will be sustainable, inclusive, transparent, and with appropriate accountability,” he added.

Marinduque Governor Presbitero Velasco, Jr., who also serves as President of the League of Provinces of the Philippines (LPP), said they are optimistic in attaining food security with the increased IRA and local autonomy.

“The ‘Mandanas-Garcia ruling’ is critical not only because it corrects the 30-year injustice to the LGUs over their failure to receive their rightful entitlement from the national taxes collected by the national government; but also, an affirmation of the vital role played by the LGUs in national development,” Velasco said.

He added that starting next year, “all provinces, cities, municipalities, and barangays shall receive their respective ‘just’ share in the national tax collections, to carry out needed programs that were shelved in the past for lack of resources.”

The DA chief said the local executives' insights and recommendations will form part of an updated, inclusive, and collaborative national food security blueprint that will chart the transformation of a competitive Philippine agriculture.