417 mayors, 207 vice mayors to be replaced in May 10 polls

MANILA, Philippines - A total of 417 mayors and 207 vice mayors are on their last terms and would no longer be in their positions on the May 10 elections, a report from the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) said.

The DILG’s Local Government Academy (LGA) reported that five of the 417 outgoing local chief executives are from Metro Manila.

The last-termer local officials have been tasked to train their successors on managerial skills for local development, Interior Secretary Ronaldo Puno said.

Puno said the DILG has already prepared a comprehensive training program for the incoming set of local officials to develop and enhance their capabilities as managers for local development.

“This early, we are ready to help and assist our incoming local officials to enable them to confront and overcome the challenges in local governance,” he said.

Puno said the new local officials would be trained under the Newly Elected Officials (NEO) Program.

The NEO was designed to prepare newly-elected local officials for their duties and responsibilities as leaders in their respective communities.

The NEO program would ensure smooth transition of power among local officials, lay the foundation for them for their first 100 days in office, as well as fine tune their managerial skills and competency.