FORMER Provincial Board member Gabriel Luis “Luigi” Quisumbing will propose the conversion of Consolacion town into a city if he is elected as sixth district congressman on May 10.
His rival, Ariston Cortes III, said he will file a bill making Mandaue City a lone congressional district—the eighth one in Cebu Province.
“As I promised the town of Consolacion, the first bill I’m going to file, if I’m blessed enough to win, is to convert the town into a city,” Quisumbing said in a visit to the
Sun.Star Cebu newsroom Tuesday.
Quisumbing admitted it will be difficult to work for Consolacion’s conversion, but that “as the gateway to northern Cebu, it needs to be a city to support its development.”
Section 450 of the Local Government Code, as amended, states a town must earn an income of P100 million a year, on the average, in the last two years before its
conversion.
It also needs to meet one of these two other requirements: a population of at least 150,000 and a land area of at least 100 square kilometers.
As of 2007, Consolacion’s population stood at 87,544. It has a bigger land area (37.03 sq. km.) than Mandaue City, but still falls short of the law’s requirement.
“It’s a tough road. It’s not a decision we’ve come to lightly,” said Quisumbing.
“But you know, in evolution, you just always have to go one step higher. You can’t regress. Consolacion is a hotbed for economic development. It needs to be able to provide for progress. On the budget of a municipality, that’s very hard to do.”
Three new cities in Cebu benefited from a Supreme Court decision in December 2009 that said their conversion was valid.
It said Bogo, Carcar and Naga, along with 13 other new cities, were exempted from the law that raised a city’s minimum income requirement from P20 million to P100 million a year.
Quisumbing said the bigger Internal Revenue Allotment that goes to a city will enable Consolacion to develop barangays that are far from its town center. It will also have to develop “its next logical growth area,” the coastal community now made more accessible by the opening this year of the Cansaga Bay Bridge.
Cortes, for his part, said Mandaue, with its size and population, needs a bigger share in pork barrel funds for its development.
The P70-million annual pork barrel could do a lot to improve the city’s delivery of basic services to its constituents.
Mandaue City is part of the sixth congressional district, which includes Lapu-Lapu City, Consolacion and Cordova.
He lamented Rep. Nerissa Soon-Ruiz’s failure to convert Mandaue into a lone district during her term. He believes Ruiz prioritized Lapu-Lapu City, which became the seventh congressional district in Cebu last year, since she has her own agenda.
Mandaue City became a highly urbanized city in 1992 or years before Lapu-Lapu City became one.
Meanwhile, Quisumbing expressed doubts that residents of Cordova will agree to make the town a part of Cebu City.
“Cordova, being a very proud town, they have their own Cordovanhon anthem, I don’t think that they would now agree to become a barangay of Cebu City. But, we are all masters of own fate,” he said, adding that the process will be subject to a plebiscite.
“I don’t feel that is the case. I know that Cordovanhons are very proud people. They are fiercely independent,” Quisumbing added.
His opinion was sought after Cebu City Mayor Tomas Osmeña had expressed his intention to make Cordova a part of Cebu City.
The administration’s bet said he has a plan to build another bridge from the South Road Properties (SRP) to Cordova to bring some economic activity to the town. It will become the shortest route from Cebu City to the airport.
“Right now, it (Cordova) is away from the major route. Quite a bit of travel to get there. But if we are able to open up the traffic from the SRP in Cebu City to Cordova that will spur economic growth,” he said, adding that it will also lessen the traffic in Mandaue.
Meanwhile, industrialist Norberto Quisumbing, owner of the Norkis Group of Companies, campaigned for his grandson Luigi in a gathering with Mandaue businessmen yesterday.
In a forum he organized and dubbed “Consultation with the Business Community,” Quisumbing said they should vote for candidates who have the traits of honesty, honor and humility.
“There is an underlying and a crying need or a call for change.
And just like businessmen, you and I and all of us business executives know that when we call for change we are always for something better. We are always streamlining this, improving this, cutting cost, removing those that are not efficient and putting in efficient-–new leaders in government,” Quisumbing added.