Puerto Princesa now a highly-urbanized city

Puerto Princesa now a highly-urbanized city

President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo has converted Puerto Princesa City in Palawan into a highly-urbanized city in consonance with the national government’s policy to support the initiative of local governments to become self-reliant communities and effective partners in attaining national goals.

In his regular weekly press briefing in Malacañang yesterday afternoon, Executive Secretary Eduardo Ermita said the President effected the conversion of Puerto Princesa into a highly-urbanized city through Proclamation No. 1264 which she signed on March 26.

According to Ermita, Section 453 of the Local Government Code (LGC) of 1991 “provides that it shall be the duty of the President of the Philippines to declare a city as highly-urbanized within thirty (30) days after it shall have met the minimum requirements prescribed in Section 452 of the same Code, upon proper application therefore.”

On Jan. 15, 2007, the Sangguniang Panglungsod of Puerto Princesa through its Resolution No. 614-2007 requested the President to declare the city as a highly-urbanized city.

The Office of the President conducted a thorough verification and found out that Puerto Princesa has met the minimum requirements prescribed for a city to be classified as highly-urbanized.

The LGC’s Section 452 states “that cities with a minimum population of two hundred thousand (200,000) inhabitants as certified by the National Statistics Office and with the latest income of at least Fifty Million Pesos (P50,000,000.00) based on 1991 constant prices as certified by the City Treasurer, shall be classified as highly-urbanized cities.”

“Whereas, it is a declared policy of the government to support local governments’ initiative to attain their fullest development as self-reliant communities and make them more effective partners in the attainment of national goals,” the President said in the proclamation.

The proclamation also provides that Puerto Princesa City will legally be declared as a highly-urbanized city only upon ratification through a plebiscite by the qualified voters of the city.

The rules and regulations implementing the LGC of 1991 state the following procedures:

a. Resolution – The interested city shall submit to the Office of the President of the Philippines a resolution of its Sanggunian adopted by a majority of its members in a meeting duly called for the purpose, and approved and endorsed by the city mayor. Said resolution shall be accompanied by a certification as to income and population.

b. Declaration of Conversion – Within thirty (30) days from receipt of such resolution, the President of the Philippines shall, after verifying that the income and population requirements have been met, declare the city as highly-urbanized.

c. Plebiscite – Within one hundred twenty (120) days from the declaration of the President of the Philippines or as specified in the declaration, the Commission on Elections (Comelec) shall conduct a plebiscite in the city proposed to be converted. Such plebiscite shall be preceded by a comprehensive information campaign to be conducted by the Comelec with the assistance of national and local government officials, media, non-government organizations and other interested parties.

released 3/29/2007