The Sangguniang Barangay, also known as the Barangay Council, and formerly as the Rural Council and then the Barrio Council, is the

legislative body A legislature is an assembly with the authority to make laws for a political entity such as a country or city. They are often contrasted with the executive and judicial powers of government. Laws enacted by legislatures are usually known ...

of a

barangay A barangay (; abbreviated as Brgy. or Bgy.), historically referred to as barrio (abbreviated as Bo.), is the smallest administrative division in the Philippines and is the native Filipino term for a village, district, or ward. In metropolita ...

, the lowest form of government in the

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

. The term is coined from the

Tagalog Tagalog may refer to: Language * Tagalog language, a language spoken in the Philippines ** Old Tagalog, an archaic form of the language ** Batangas Tagalog, a dialect of the language * Tagalog script, the writing system historically used for Taga ...

words ''sanggunian'' (literally, "advisory") and ''barangay''. Each council is headed by a barangay captain, and comprises seven members all titled barangay kagawad (barangay councilor), and the chairman of the

Sangguniang Kabataan Sangguniang Kabataan (abbreviated as SK; ) is a council meant to represent the youth in each barangay in the Philippines. It was put "on hold", but not quite abolished, prior to the 2013 barangay elections. In January 2016, the Sangguniang ...

, the barangay's youth council, for a total of eight members. All of these officers are elected at large. As with any other elective local official in the Philippines, a member of the Sangguniang Barangay must be a Filipino citizen and a resident of the barangay that he or she plans to run for at least one year immediately preceding the barangay elections. In addition, the candidate must be able to write in Filipino or other

language Language is a structured system of communication. The structure of a language is its grammar and the free components are its vocabulary. Languages are the primary means by which humans communicate, and may be conveyed through a variety of ...

or dialect in the Philippines. For those who are aspiring to be a barangay captain or a member of the Sangguniang Barangay, they must be at least 18 years old on the day of election while for the candidates for Sanggunian Kabataan, they must be at least 15 years old but not more than 21 years old on the day of the election. As a collegiate body, a barangay council primarily passes ordinances and resolutions for the effective administration of the

. Its powers and functions are defined by the Local Government Code of 1991. As for the other officials, the secretary and the treasurer are appointed by the barangay captain with the concurrence of the Sangguniang Barangay. Their qualifications, powers, and duties are laid down also in the Local Government Code of 1991.

History

During the

American Colonial Period The Thirteen Colonies, also known as the Thirteen British Colonies, the Thirteen American Colonies, or later as the United Colonies, were a group of British colonies on the Atlantic coast of North America. Founded in the 17th and 18th centur ...

, appointed Rural Councils were created, with four councillors assisting the council's Barrio Lieutenant, now known as the Barangay Captain. The body was later renamed Barrio Council. The 1959 Barrio Charter Act, passed after Philippine independence in 1946, changed the council from being appointed to elected. In 1982,

Batas Pambansa This article contains a partial list of Philippine laws. Sources of Philippine laws ;Notes : *Customs may be considered as supplementary source of law, however, customs which are contrary to law, public order or public policy shall not be ...

(lit. "National Law") Bilang (Number) 222 was passed to provide an act for election of barangay officials, and for other purposes. In this act, barangay officials consist of a Punong Barangay (barangay captain) and six Kagawad (Councilmen) of the Sangguniang Barangay. The

Local Government Code Codification of laws is a common practice in the Philippines. Many general areas of substantive law, such as criminal law, civil law and labor law are governed by legal codes. Tradition of codification Codification is predominant in cou ...

of 1991 redefined this and it is prevailing law for the roles and responsibilities of the Sangguniang Barangay.

References

External links

Barrio Charter Act on ChanRobles.com
{{Legislatures of the Philippines Barangays of the Philippines Local government in the Philippines Legislatures of the Philippines Tagalog words and phrases

History

See also

References

External links