180 Chasing the Wind: Assessing Philippine Democracy 14 The categories followed the Galing Pook Award categorization of projects that were awarded from 1994 to 2010, with slight modifications of the author. We acknowledge the help of the Galing Pook Award in providing us the full list of awardees on which this table was based. Any omission or error in classifying the awardees is the author's responsibility alone. 15 As noted in the TAF Rapid Appraisal Report Synopsis. 16 It is ordinary for statutes in the Philippines to be infused with flaws inasmuch as the process of legislation involves bargaining and log-rolling among legislators and groups which they represent and aim to satisfy. In the case of the LGC, Guevara notes that the expenditure part of the statute was largely the work of the Senate while the income side was the handiwork of the House. Diokno (Decentralization in the Philippines after 10 years: what have we learned? What have I learned? 2003. Retrieved from http://www.econ.upd.edu.ph/ dp/index.php/dp/article/viewFile/32/27 http://www.econ.upd.edu.ph/dp/index.php/dp/article/view/32/27) talks about the grandstanding among the leaders of Congress, raising the IRA share from the originally proposed 20% of national revenues to as high as 45% and the chambers subsequently agreeing with the Executive then to bring it down to a phased sharing. 17 Milwida M. Guevara, “The fiscal decentralization process in the Philippines: Lessons from experience”. 2004. Retrieved from http://www.econ.hit-u.ac.jp/~kokyo/APPPsympo04/PhilippineGuevara.pdf 18 A Newsbreak report (“GMA Creating too many LGUs”) revealed that former President Arroyo created, with Congressional approval, a total of 3 provinces, 22 cities, 17 municipalities, and 52 barangays from January 2001 to December 2006. Under the short term of former President Estrada, the number of provinces did not increase, the number of municipalities declined as a result of the conversion of 11 municipalities into cities, while the number of barangays was reduced. Retrieved from http://www.newsbreak.ph/2007/08/22/gma-creating-too-many-lgus/. 19 Manasan 2009. Manasan argues that the LGC tax assignment scores low in terms of the autonomy criterion as it “seriously limits their power to set tax rates…(as).. the Code fixes the tax rate for some types of taxes like the SEF real property tax rate, and the community tax… the maximum allowable rates appear to be too low. …(and) the Code mandates that tax rates can only beadjusted once in 5 years and by no more than 10 percent.” 20 Data used to produced the charts are from the Department of Finance—Bureau of Local Government Finance website. http://www.blgf.gov.ph/#. 21 As cited in http://phildevfinance.posterous.com/there-will-be-moreprovinces-imposing-the-idl.