Congressional Legitimation of Municipal Reform in the Philippines, 1954-1960

Filipino political leaders have been addressing themselves to the issue of municipal reform since the dawn of the twentieth century, but discussion of the issue never reached a high intensity until the then Institute of Public Administration of the University of the Philippines (established in 1954 under the aegis of American technical assistance) defined the issues more clearly. The thrust of this renewed enthusiasm in local government reform included greater local powers, lesser national supervision over local administrative activities, and lesser legislative meddling in municipal affairs. Being a highly centralized political system under which local and national officials (both elected and appointed) have created a civic culture consisting of national review of some local administrative decisions and local dependence upon congressional pork barrels for the financing of municipal projects, any advocacy of local autonomy had to come from the top of the Philippine political totem pole and any legitimation of municipal reform policy must take place in Congress

Administration (probate law · Autonomy · Enthusiasm · Legislature · Legitimacy · Legitimation · Local government · Political science · Politics · Irish and British Studies · Law · Philippine History and Culture · Public Administration

• The Cities of the Philippines

  J E Spencer•Journal of Geography•1958

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