WHEREAS,
the International Declaration of the Rights of the Child states that
"mankind owes to the child the best it has to give";chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
WHEREAS, one of the priority thrusts of the New Society is to plan and
carry out a comprehensive program for the development of children and
youth of our nation;chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
WHEREAS, the Children and Youth Welfare Code (PD 603) recognizes the
child as one of the most important assets of the nation; and
WHEREAS, it is the concern of Government to assist and provide material
and financial support in the establishment and maintenance of a Lungsod
ng Kabataan, primarily to benefit the children of the Philippines, and
to further enhance the research in pediatric diseases, training of
medical and technical personnel, and specialized medical services for
the prevention and treatment of children's diseases.
NOW, THEREFORE, I, FERDINAND E. MARCOS, President of the Philippines,
by virtue of the powers vested in me by the Constitution, do hereby
order and decree:cralaw:red
Section 1. Creation of the Lungsod ng Kabataan. —
There is hereby created a trust, for the benefit primarily of the
Filipino people, under the name and style of Lungsod ng Kabataan. chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
The Lungsod ng Kabataan shall be administered by a Board of Trustees,
composed of seven (7) members, to be appointed by the President of the
Philippines. The Director of the Center shall be appointed by the Board
of Trustees.
The six appointive members of the Board of Trustees shall serve without
compensation for a period of four (4) years and until their successors
shall have been appointed and qualified. Any vacancy in the Board shall
be filled by appointment by the President of the Philippines, and the
appointee shall serve for the unexpired term. The Board of Trustees of
the Lungsod ng Kabataan shall elect a Chairman from among themselves,
who shall be presiding officer of the Board of Trustees.
The Director of the Lungsod ng Kabataan shall serve as Vice-Chairman of
the Board. The Director shall act as the chief executive officer of the
Lungsod ng Kabataan, with authority, among others, to appoint, remove,
and fix the compensation of the personnel thereof, subject to the
approval of the Board of Trustees. chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
Four (4) members of the Board of Trustees shall constitute a quorum to
transact business and any decision of such four members on any matter
duly presented to the Board of Trustees shall constitute a valid and
binding act of the Lungsod ng Kabataan.
Section 2. Property of the Center. — The Property of
the Lungsod ng Kabataan shall consist of such real, personal, mixed and
other type of property, now owned or reserved for, or may hereafter be
given, donated, acquired, transferred or conveyed to, the Lungsod ng
Kabataan by the Philippine Government, its branches and
instrumentalities, by any foreign government, as well as by trust,
foundations, corporations, or persons, alien or domestic, in order to
carry out its purposes and objectives as set forth herein.
Section 3. Purposes and objectives. — The purposes
and objectives of the Lungsod ng Kabataan are: chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
a. To construct, establish, operate and maintain
facilities for the children's welfare, including a specialized hospital
for children;chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
b. To promote, encourage and engage in scientific
research on the prevention of pediatric diseases and the care and/or
treatment of pediatric patients and related activities, including
sponsorship and conduct of relevant congresses, conventions, seminars,
and conferences;chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
c. To stimulate and/or underwrite scientific
researches on biological, demographic, social, economic eugenic,
physiological aspects of pediatric disorders and abnormalities and
their control; and gather, compile, and publish the findings of such
researches for public dissemination;chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
d. To facilitate and encourage the dissemination and
exchange of ideas and information on the prevention, treatment and
control of pediatric diseases; to arouse, enhance and develop public
interest in children, general health and physical fitness, especially
on the promotion of health and rehabilitation, and other relevant or
related fields; chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
e. To encourage and/or undertake the training of
physicians, nurses, medical technicians, health officers and social
workers on the practical and scientific conduct and implementation of
pediatric services;chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
f. To assist universities, hospitals and research
institutions in their studies of congenital and acquired anomalies, to
encourage advanced training on matters of, or affecting the child, and
related fields and to support educational programs of value to general
health;chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
g. To encourage the formation of other organizations
on the national, provincial, city, municipal or barangay level and to
coordinate their various efforts and activities for the purpose of
achieving a more effective approach to the common problem relative to
the objectives herein enumerated; and chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
h. To extend pediatric services to the general
public, to help prevent, relieve or alleviate the afflictions and
maladies of children and youth specially the poor and less fortunate in
life, without regard to race, creed, color or political belief.
Section 4. Powers. — For the attainment and/or
furtherance of the above purposes and objectives, the Lungsod ng
Kabataan as a body corporate, acting through its Board of Trustees
shall have all the powers pertaining to a juridical person, and is
therefore authorized, among other things:cralaw:red
a. To acquire and hold in any manner property of
whatever nature or description, and to dispose of such property under
any mode of encumbrance or conveyance;chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
b. To contract and be contracted with;chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
c. To mortgage, lease, sell, transfer convey or
otherwise dispose of its properties;chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
d. To solicit and receive donations, endowments and
funds in the form of contributions, whether in cash or in kind, from
both the public and private sectors;chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
e. To open such accounts in banks and other financial
institutions, and to disburse such funds or invest the same as the
Board may direct to accomplish or advance the purposes or interest of
the Lungsod ng Kabataan;chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
f. To invite foreign pediatric specialists and
similar experts in the various medical fields not available in the
country; to train the personnel or trainees or residents of Lungsod ng
Kabataan; chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
g. To send the personnel of the Lungsod ng Kabataan
to research institutes, medical institutes or universities for advance
training or observation and to attend international or regional
conventions, conferences, congresses, seminars as the Board may deem
necessary to accomplish the purposes and objectives of the Lungsod ng
Kabataan;chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
h. To adopt a set of by-laws, rules and regulations
not inconsistent with law and the provisions hereof to govern the
administration and operation of the affairs of the Lungsod ng Kabataan;
and
i. To do all such other acts and things as are or may
be necessary or incidental for the accomplishment of the purposes and
objectives of the Lungsod ng Kabataan. chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
Section 5. Tax exemptions, etc. — All donations,
contributions or endowments which may be made by entities or persons to
the Lungsod ng Kabataan shall be exempt from income and gift taxes, and
the same shall be further deductible in full for purposes of computing
the maximum amount deductible under Section 30, paragraph (h) of the
National Internal Revenue Code, as amended.
The Lungsod ng Kabataan shall be exempt from the payment of all taxes,
charges and fees imposed by the Government or any political subdivision
or instrumentality thereof.
All income earned by foreign doctors who shall use the facilities of
the Center shall be tax exempt.
Section 6. Assistance from government offices. — The
Lungsod ng Kabataan may call upon any ministry, bureau, office, agency
or instrumentality of the Government, including government-owned or
controlled corporations, for such assistance as it may need in the
pursuit of its purposes and objectives. chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
All individuals, entities and institutions are hereby enjoined to
render full assistance and cooperation to the Lungsod ng Kabataan in
the accomplishment of its objectives and activities.
Section 7. Government contributions. — The amount of
ten million pesos (P10,000,000.00) is hereby appropriated as
contribution of the National Government for the initial operations and
maintenance of the Lungsod ng Kabataan. The Lungsod ng Kabataan shall
be under the Ministry of Human Settlements and the necessary amount to
support the continued operation and maintenance of the Children's City
shall be appropriated and released, subject to the approval of the
President of the Philippines.
Section 8. Auditing. — The books and accounts of the
Children's City shall be under the charge of a Resident Auditor,
subject to periodic auditing by the Chairman of the Commission on
Audit, or his duly authorized representative. chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
Section 9. Annual report. — The Lungsod ng Kabataan
shall render to the President of the Philippines an annual report of
its activities and recommendations.
Section 10. Effect of dissolution of the Center. —
If, for any reason the Lungsod ng Kabataan is dissolved, its property
remaining at the time of such dissolution shall revert to the
Philippine Government for dissolution in accordance with law. chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
Section 11. Effectivity. — This Decree shall take
effect immediately.
Done in the City of Manila,
this 10th day of August, in the year of Our Lord, nineteen hundred and
seventy-nine.
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