Pacquiao pushes for creation of new town in Sarangani

Pacquiao pushes for creation of new town in Sarangani

General Santos City – Rep. Emmanuel Pacquiao is pushing for the creation of a new municipality in Saragani which will be composed of at least 11 barangays carved out from Malungon town.

Pacquiao and Flor Limpin, provincial director of Department of the Interior and Local Government, agreed to form a technical working group that will facilitate the submission of needed requirements for the creation of the proposed municipality, to be called Malandag, to Congress for approval.

Limpin said Malungon Mayor Reynaldo Constantino and Vice-Mayor Erwin Asgapo had earlier asked Pacquiao to fast track the passage of the bill that will seek the creation of Malandag that will be composed of barangays Malandag, Datal Tampal, Altae, Alkikan, Kibala, Malabod, Blaan, Datal Batong, Datal Bila, Consolacion and Nagpan.

Limpin said the technical working group will assist Pacquiao in the passage of the House bill, which is now under evaluation by appropriate committees in Congress.

Local officials had first initiated the creation of new municipality way back in 1995 through the initiative of former Vice-Governor Felipe Constantino who had already worked out the budgetary requirements for the conduct of a plebiscite.

The late Rep. Erwin L. Chiongbian then filed the bill in Congress for the creation of new municipality until it reached the Senate Committee on Local Governance which was then under the chairmanship of the late Senator Robert Barbers. However, the bill was not enacted.

Limpin said Pacquiao had promised to allocate P3 million for the conduct of a plebiscite for the creation of new municipality.

The League of Mayors of the Philippines in Sarangani has already passed a resolution requesting Pacquiao to fast track the creation of a new Malandag town that will add to the existing towns of the province– Malapatan, Alabel, Malungon, Maasim, Kiamba and Maitum.