Local Government Unit of General Santos City Socio-Economic Profile 2012 SOCIO – ECONOMIC BRIEFER 2012 General Santos City 1 www.gensantos.gov.ph Local Government Unit of General Santos City Socio-Economic Profile 2012 FOREWORD Office of the City Planning and Dev’t Coordinator publishes a PERIODIC socio-economic profile which aims to provide an insight to MagandanGensan. This compilation of data is a joint effort of the different departments of the City Government, national government agencies (NGAs), private sector and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and would like to thank everyone for being a party to this endeavor. G VISION AND MISSION Vision General Santos City is a globally competitive and livable city whose healthy, friendly, well-educated and responsible citizens actively participate in effective governance. Mission To provide opportunities to all segments of the society to be productive and responsive stakeholders, through execution of sound and beneficial programs and projects and initiatives, anchored on the principles of justice and equality. 1.0 HISTORICAL SNAPSHOTS On February 27, 1939, General Paulino Santos landed on 1939 the shores of the beautiful Sarangani Bay with 62 first batchers of Christian settlers under the National Land Settlement Administration (NLSA) program of then President Manuel L. Quezon. 1947 Ireneo L Santiago was elected in November 1947 as mayor of the Municipality of Buayan. His administration was credited for the establishment of the basic institutions and infrastructures like the wharf, the municipal building costing P19, 700.00, public school buildings, and a constabulary barracks. The administration of Mayor Pedro Acharon, Sr. concerned itself with the barrio programs of 1955 President Magsaysay. Through the PACD (Presidential Assistance for Community Development), feeder roads connecting the remote barrios to the national highways were built. Artesian wells were established to solve the problem of water supply among the rural folks. Likewise, he finished the projects started by Mayor Santiago particularly Makar Wharf which was declared an open port 2 www.gensantos.gov.ph Local Government Unit of General Santos City Socio-Economic Profile 2012 of entry in 1959. The Buayan airport was also rehabilitated from the ruins of the war during his term. Dr. Jorge Royeca’s administration emphasized cleanliness, beautification and health services. 1960 During his administration, General Santos Municipality was declared the cleanest town in the province of Cotabato. Anti-littering law was strictly implemented, stray animals were impounded, trees were planted along the national highway, and the continuous beautification of parks and the public plaza were pursued. Worth mentioning was the successful relocation of the squatters found along the beaches into Alunan Street. 1964 During Mayor Lucio Velayo's term, the place saw the establishment of the following projects: the first two public secondary schools: one in Bula and the other in Conel; the establishment of the fire department; the concretization of the Philippine National Bank; and the establishment of deep wells in different barangays particularly in Klinan, Conel, and Tinagakan. Multi-national companies such as Standard Fruits Company (STANFILCO), the Coca-Cola Bottling Company were established in the municipality. The administration of Mayor Velayo also saw rapid stride in the field of media communication with the publication of the first local newspaper, the Southern Review, and the establishment of the first radio station, DXGS. Economic growth gained a very significant leap during Mayor Velayo's term. Multi-million agri-based corporations such as Dole-Philippines, General Milling Corporation and UDAGRI begun operating in the area. This time, the municipality qualified as a fourth class city prompting Congressman Salipada Pendatun to file House Bill 5862 converting General Santos Municipality into a city and renaming it Rajah Buayan City. Unfortunately, the residents in a plebiscite called for the purpose rejected this bill. The failure to convert General Santos Municipality into a city, however, occurred not in the halls of Congress but in the hollowed halls of the Supreme Court in recognition of the people's "rejection" of their cityhood. Thru the efforts of Congressman James Chiongbian, the passage of Republic Act (RA) 5412 1968 transforming the Municipality of General Santos into a city made Antonio Acharon the last municipal mayor and the first city mayor of General Santos. A more enduring testament to the magnanimity of the Acharon-Cahilsot family are the land donations to the government which include the present sports complex (10 hectares); PC Barracks (9 hectares); Pedro Acharon Elementary School (1/2hectare); Romana Cahilsot Elementary School; the Bliss Project in Calumpang; the City Cemetery; and what is now Silway area. The educational needs of the city were given emphasis during Acharon's time with the opening of several public elementary schools in six barangays (Apopong, Sinawal, Upper Labay, Labangal, Dadiangas Heights Lagao and Sitio Uhaw, Tambler). Two existing public elementary schools in the poblacion area, Dadiangas West and Dadiangas South, were divided and gave rise to two additional public elementary schools, Pedro Acharon Elementary School and Ireneo Santiago Elementary School. During Mayor Antonio Acharon's incumbency, other important infrastructure projects were: government hospital, a new public market, concreting of major city streets and highways, building of bridges and dikes, the improvement of Makar Wharf, and the start of the construction of a modern City Hall. The economic growth of the city was undeniable with its declaration by the Department of Finance as a first class city based on its income in 1975. Mayor Antonio Acharon's term is the longest spanning almost two decades. After the peaceful People Power Revolution in 1986, Atty. Dominador Lagare, one of the 1986 persistent opposition leaders who fought and opposed the Marcos regime, was appointed the officer-in-charge of the city. Just like his predecessor, Atty. Lagare was a Mindanaon having been born in Barangay Conel in 1943. The incumbency of Atty. Lagare was too short to fully appreciate his impact to the development of General Santos City. It was during Atty. Lagare's term that the construction of the unfinished city hall was completed in time for the Foundation Day Celebration of the city on February 27, 1987. Appointed as an OIC mayor vice Atty. Lagare starting March 1, 1987, Mayor Rosalita Nuñez is 1988 credited for the adoption of the symbolic slogan "boomtown Dadiangas" as a catchword to create an image of feverish economic growth in the post-Edsa period. But more than a manifestation of the pioneering spirit of the people, the term assumed significance as a socially constructed word - 3 www.gensantos.gov.ph Local Government Unit of General Santos City Socio-Economic Profile 2012 born of the people, promoted and developed across time by the conscious efforts of the various segments of the community particularly the business sector and the local media. The government's adoption of the term as a strategy for development was explained in the 1991 publication by the city government: "It formulated a strategy to promote General Santos City as a "Boom Town" aimed at creating an image or even an atmosphere of feverish economic growth. In this, it has won the support of the private sector to embark on a program to attract foreign and domestic investors to the city. Furthermore, through private sector efforts, continuous lobby pressure is exerted on the National Government to push through with its plans and programs for the city at the soonest possible time." The city caught the attention of foreign leaders involve d in the Philippine Aid Plan (PAP) who selected General Santos City as one of their first pilot projects. Under the city's $2.2 billion development plan are two components financed by PAP. One includes agroport (fishport complex), telecommunications, airport expansion, and seaport expansion; another encompasses industrial estates, road networks, pro-people organizations, and environment. The development plan made General Santos City the "concentration of the largest infrastructure projects in the country today", a natural result of its crucial role in both the SOCSARGEN growth area and SOCSARGEN'S role in the East ASEAN Growth Area (EAGA). 1992 With the assumption of Mayor Adelbert W. Antonino, who won the May 11, 1992 election, the city continued to develop as a major economic center. This is further boosted by the implementation of the Philippine Assistance Projects (PAP) of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). These include the international standard General Santos Airport, the Makar Wharf, Fishport Complex and the Agro-Processing Center. General Santos City's incessant march to the 21st millennium is undeniable at the end of Mayor Antonino's first term which is also marked by improvements in organizational structure. 1995 Mayor Nuñez was back at the helm of local governance in 1995. The city was host to the Palarong Pambansa and the 1st BIMP-EA GA FRIENDSHIP GAMES in 1996 which highlighted the city's capability for social and economic growth and as an active partner in national development endeavors. The EAGA Games was participated by the 8 focus areas of the BIMP-EAGA member countries namely: Brunei Darussalam; East Kalimantan, West Kalimantan, North Sulawesi of Indonesia; Labuan, Sarawak, Sabah