BACOLOD City was chosen number one among the 10 best cities to live in the Philippines by social media group "The Conyo Times."
“This is very inspiring and encouraging,” Mayor Evelio Leonardia said.
In a video presentation posted on its Facebook and Youtube accounts, The Conyo Times said Bacolod has been experiencing a rapid growth in tourism and infrastructure in the past few years.
The thriving economy is also evident with the rise of big infrastructure and housing development, it added.
Moreover, The Conyo Times said, “Also known for the MassKara Festival, one of the most exciting and colorful festivals in the country, the city’s laid-back atmosphere, friendly locals, and low cost living, in highly urbanized setting, make Bacolod unique with other cities in the Philippines.”
Leonardia said he is hopeful that this sense of pride will be remembered by Bacolodnons so they will also feel obligated to participate in continuing to make Bacolod one of the best cities in the Philippines.
In 2008, Bacolod was also hailed by MoneySense magazine as the No. 1 city in its “Best Places to Live in the Philippines.”
Leonardia said based on the survey conducted by the Philippine Human Development Report and the Philippine Cities Competitiveness Ranking Project (PCCRP) of the Asian Institute of Management (AIM) in 2003 and 2005, Bacolod topped the list of being the most competitive mid-sized city.
“We would like to use these as our basis or measurement that if we had done these before, we can make it again. I hope these things in the past and the new development should remind all of us that we can do it and we had proven it. It’s a matter of doing it again,” he added.