President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. has assured local government units that the current administration is taking "very seriously" the issues arising from the Mandanas ruling.

Speaking during the 2023 General Assembly of the League of Municipalities of the Philippines (LMP) on Wednesday, Feb. 22, Marcos said the national government is examining the Executive Order No. 138, considering the existing technical capabilities of local government units (LGUs) and reduced tax allotment this year.

"Gagamitin ngayon namin itong one year na ito para pag-aralan nang mabuti yung 138. Tingnan natin na siguro may mga function kasi na binibigay sa local, hindi naman dapat sa local talaga (We will use this one year to study very seriously the EO 138. We will look into the functions given to local governments that must not be given to them in the first place)," Marcos said.

"And so that’s what we are examining, asahan ninyo (You can expect) as I said that we are taking very seriously the issues that have come out from the Mandanas ruling and how we will implement it because hopefully by next year, by ’24, mag-i-improve na ang ating koleksyon kasi sa 2021, medyo maganda-ganda na, medyo umaahon na ‘yung ekonomiya, baka mayroon naman talaga tayong makuha (our collection would improve because in 2021, our economy improved so maybe we'll get something)," Marcos explained.

EO No. 138, which directs the full devolution of certain functions of the executive branch to the LGUs, was issued to aid the efficient implementation of the Supreme Court Ruling on the Mandanas-Garcia case and strengthen the autonomy and empowerment of LGUs.

The President described the implementation of the Mandanas ruling as one of the most significant issues faced by the government.

According to him, there are a lot of issues in local government operations that need to be looked into, and "we have to coordinate and to synchronize all that we are doing at the local level with what we are planning to do at the national level."

Marcos also reiterated the national government's commitment to support the local government, saying they must listen to the local leaders because they know better.

"Para sa akin kailangan na yung mga ginagawa natin ay – kami sa national government ay kailangang makinig sa inyo. Dahil kayo’y nasa local, masasabi niyo, alam na alam ninyo – tingnan n'yo kayong lahat mga mayor walang makakapagsabi sa inyo na may taong mas alam ang bayan ninyo kaysa sa inyo (In my opinion, we, in the national government, must listen to you because nobody knows your community better than you do)," Marcos said.

"You are the experts about your municipality. You are the most aware of the problems that you have. You are also the most aware of the possible solutions," Marcos added.

He further said the doors of Malacañang are always open for them.

"Asahan ninyo na dito sa administrasyong ito ay nakabukas lahat ng aking pandinig upang marinig kung ano ang pangangailangan ng ating mga local officials at kung anuman ang ating magagawa upang solusyonan ang mga problema na hinaharap ninyo (You can expect that this administration is listening to your needs and to help you to provide solutions to your problems)," Marcos said.

"Kaya’t magtulungan tayo at asahan ninyo na ang Malacañang ay nakikinig sa inyo (Let's work together and you can expect that Malacañang is listening to you)," he added.

In August 2022, Marcos formed a team that will look into the issues of devolution and decentralization of the functions of the local and national governments amid the Mandanas-Garcia ruling implementation.