KABANKALAN City Mayor Isidro Zayco said on Wednesday the abolition of the Negros Island Region (NIR) will not hamper the development in their city since it has been going on even before the creation of the region.
“Because of budgetary constraints, NIR was abolished but as far as Kabankalan is concerned, when NIR was not yet planned, several investors have been coming to the city because of its location as the convergence area of Negros Occidental and Negros Oriental,” the mayor said.
It had been planned that regional center of NIR will be located in Kabankalan.
Zayco said there are already new roads from Kabankalan going to Ayungon town, and to Bayawan City in Negros Oriental.
“The city’s development continues because we are at the junction of the two provinces. Several investors are already in the city and several others have already signified their intentions of putting up their businesses,” he added.
Major establishments that have branches in Kabankalan are Pure Gold, Citi Hardware, CityMall, Gaisano, and Robinsons. There are 20 gasoline stations, 15 commercial banks, five hotels, and some pension houses in Kabankalan.
They are also waiting for the installation of fiber optics so that call centers would eventually come to Kabankalan.
“So the abolition of NIR has no effect on Kabankalan,” Zayco said.