Creating a Cordillera Autonomous Region

BEHIND THE SCENES

Alfred P. Dizon

(Adrienne Salvi B. Bayangan writes this week’s column. We urge a healthy discussion on the issue of Cordillera regional autonomy so we encourage our readers to send their views on the matter.)

Before anything else, I would like to acknowledge the resource book entitled Cordillera Regional Autonomy which is a project of the Regional Development Council (RDC) and the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) Cordillera Administrative Region (CAR), edited by Lorelei C. Mendoza produced in December 2008. This book served as my basis for all the information presented here.

Regional Autonomy is a mandate to CAR. In Sucessos de las Islas Filipinas published in 1609, Antonio de Morga acknowledged the status of native Cordillerans as independent people. To put Morga’s claim into action, the late president Corazon C. Aquino created the Executive Order 220 in July 15, 1987 to prepare Cordillera Administrative Region into becoming autonomous. This is to accelerate the economic and social growth and development of the units of the region.

After a year of the same administration, she formed CRCC (Cordillera Regional Consultative Commission) to assist Congress in constructing the Cordillera Autonomous Region. But before starting the draft, the government declared Executive Order 220 which created the transitional Cordillera Administrative Region. Because of this, a widespread confusion that administrative is synonymous to autonomous.

Why do we need to pursue autonomy in our region anyway? One of the reasons is widespread poverty. The stable economic development should not be life contentment but a factor for pursuing self-governance. Secondly, discrimination in economic, political, and cultural perspective, the misconception about Igorots alone is offensive when saying they are not Filipinos. Autonomy is a mandate of CAR. This is to hasten CAR’s development pace considering its unique and distinct yet varied culture.

Subsequently, Cordillera autonomy is not easy to achieve. In fact, Republic Act No. 6766 or the first organic act for the creation of Cordillera Autonomous Region was the first F with 80, 835 voting yes and 223, 522 voting no. The issue about the indigenous people’s rights to ancestral domain was not resolved by the RA which boils down to the Cordillerans’ contrary decision. The second F is Republic Act No. 8438, with the first attempt to let leaders make the first organic act, still a failure with 133, 694 agreement and 218, 181 disagreement.

However, the No vote is not against autonomy but to forward indigenous people’s rights. It is therefore clear that the people’s resistance to autonomy is because of the lack of knowledge and orientation about government decentralization. If information dissemination is the core problem of the people’s struggle to regional autonomy, we should therefore learn more about the salient features of Cordillera autonomy.

Before the region, it is the national government’s obligation to defend and secure our region. Now sighting the working draft of RDC (Regional Development Council), let us go to the significant future changes. For the political rights, we will have corporate powers to transact business and formulate our own development policies and pursue its development programs and priorities. For the economic provisions; before conducting programs and projects in the region, there will be coordinating and consulting that will happen first.

Another important feature is that, we will have preferential right to our natural, material and fiscal resources. In addition, development and utilization of these resources shall be under the supervision of the regional government except off course to uranium, coal and petroleum which are under the national government. Finally a very important money matter is the sharing of taxes. As Cordillera Administrative Region we share 60% of our tax collection to the national government but as Cordillera Autonomous Region we share only 20% to the national government. All corporations, partnerships and other entities shall pay their corresponding taxes, fees and charges to the province/municipality/barangay where such establishment are conducting their business operations irrespective of the location of their principal or main office.            

For start of self-governance, the national government will allocate P10 billion for the first five years and P5 billion for the next five years regular allocation from the national budget. This will serve as business “capital”.

There are so many things to learn about Cordillera Regional Autonomy. And we should not be closed but be hungry to the big chance of accelerating our provinces. If information dissemination is the problem for the discrepancy of regional independence, then let us help ourselves to know more about the working draft of RDC. Seminars are planned, e-world is 24/7 and tangible resources are available. This is a challenge to all Cordillera people. 2016 on the road map declares regional autonomy achieved and enjoyed. Cordillera Autonomous Region will not be decided by the national administration but the vote of intellectual cordillera people. We hold the destiny of our region. Let us not be resistant to change.