Plaza named new PEZA chief

BUTUAN CITY, Philippines – President Duterte has appointed former Butuan City representative Charito Booc Plaza as the new director general of Philippine Economic Zone Authority (PEZA).

Plaza is one of the authors of the Special Economic Zones Law that created PEZA. She is also the principal author of Republic Act 7901 that created the Caraga Region.

Plaza thanked President Duterte for giving her the opportunity to serve as PEZA chief.

“I am fortunate to be one of the authors of the law that finally created PEZA, which included areas of Butuan City and Agusan del Norte as among those identified special economic zones. I proposed to the president in our talk last Sunday in Davao City to make eco zones as the umbrella program for economic development. We will build agricultural economic zones, industrial eco zones, tourism economic zones and defense industrial complex,” she said in a text message to The STAR.

“The ecozones will be a big break for our Caraga region and Mindanao as the president will revive the BIMP-EAGA partnerships with Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines as the East Asia growth areas. Our people, the poor, the indigenous peoples, the unemployed and the underemployed will be the final beneficiaries of this,” she added.

When she was a lawmaker, Plaza also served as chair of the tourism committee and public information committee, and as vice chair of the national defense committee of the House of Representatives.

After her term, Plaza served as consultant to the Department of Interior and Local Government, Philippine National Police, and the Armed Forces of the Philippines.