Presidential system 'defective'

The 17 mayors of Metro Manila have expressed support for President Rodrigo Duterte's strong espousal of federalism as a form of government, saying the centralized system of  government at present is "defective."

The mayors who compose the Metro Manila Council (MMC) said in a resolution that “the system of the  Philippine government [at presnt] is such that the three great powers of the executive, the legislative and the judiciary are centralized in the National Capital Region [NCR], thereby effectively alienating the other regions of the archipelago [and depriving them of] much-needed government support.”