Ilocos Norte has budgeted an initial PHP2.8 million for its juris doctor scholarship program for at least 16 law students this 2023.
Its Sangguniang Panlalawigan (Provincial Board) approved on Oct. 9 the scholarship program, which will give beneficiaries a PHP5,000 monthly allowance.
Under the scholarship program, the beneficiaries need to serve the provincial government for two years after passing the Bar exams.
Governor Matthew Joseph Manotoc, in an interview by journalists on Oct. 10, said the funding has been allocated before the Provincial Board’s approval because the government intends to hire more lawyers.
“Through the scholarship grant, we hope to assist those interested in taking up law and help in the resolution of voluminous pending cases in court,” Provincial Board Member Saul Paulo Lazo, who is also a lawyer, told journalists.
In the past two years, the provincial government has spent over PHP266 million on its various scholarship programs. (PNA)