Bulacan now has 3 cities

MALOLOS CITY — It’s official, Bulacan now has three component cities, with the ratification of the Meycauayan cityhood on Sunday.

The two other cities includes San Jose Del Monte which was converted in September 2000 and Malolos which first lost its cityhood bid in 1999 but won in the recount in 2001.

The Municipal Board of Canvassers led by Gerald Aquino together with Provincial Election Officer Atty. Gregorio Larrazabal and Municipal Election Officer Jojo Reclusado made the proclamation on Sunday night.

Records showed that a total of 13,975 votes were cast wherein 8,247 voted in favor of the conversion of Meycauayan into a city while 5,728 voted "no." The total vote cast was about 11 percent of the 118,339 registered voters of Meycauayan.

The plebiscite is the second attempt of Meycauayan for cityhood after it lost its first bid on March 30, 2001.

In 2001, a total of 22,897 cast their votes wherein 14,788 voted for the rejection of the cityhood, while only 8,109 voted in favor.

Comparing the records in the two plebiscites, it showed that only 138 new voters were added to those in favor of the conversion of Meycauayan into a city, while there was a sharp decline in the number of those who were not in favor. This situation fueled assumptions that there is a lack of information dissemination among local residents.

Rep. Reylina Nicolas, the principal author of House Bill 4397 that seeks to convert Meycauayan into a city later became RA 9356 after it was signed into law by President Arroyo, said that the local government unit and the Commission on Elections were responsible for the awareness campaign prior to the plebiscite.

She said that despite the low turnout of voters, she was happy with the results. Nicolas said that there was least resistance in the campaign as opposition leaders in the town failed to organize their group.

As a former mayor of Sta. Maria town, Nicolas said that the provincial government will be affected by the conversion of Meycauayan into a city because Meycauayan will no longer remit real property tax collections to the provincial government starting next year.

The provincial government usually receives 35 percent of the RPT collection from municipalities, while the municipal government and the barangays get 40 percent and 25 percent, respectively.

When asked for the possibility of a lone district of Meycauayan in the future, Nicolas said it might not be possible due to requirements in population count and land area.

However, it remains possible if the congressional district will include the coastal town of Obando, which, like Meycauayan, Marilao and Sta. Maria are parts of the fourth congressional district.

Nicolas said that a congressional district usually requires at least 250,000 in population.