Candaba undergoes make-over, attracts investors

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    INFRA MAN. Mayor Rene Maglanque shows one more project on the pipeline — a multi-purpose trading and   convention center cum evacuation  site. Photo by Bong Lacson 

    CANDABA, Pampanga – Investors are now flocking to this bucolic town after its chief executive embarked on    completing  a road network that will connect  its 33 barangays to the Poblacion area  and finally free it from the  perennial  flooding problem.  Mayor Rene Maglanque told members of the Society of Pampanga Columnists  (SPC)    last week that Puregold,  SM’s Savemore, Chowking and oth-er big companies have all made plans  to put up their  business in this once somnolent town.  Maglanque made his pronouncement  in a recent tete-a-tete with opinion writers at the Mayor’s Office at the  municipal hall which is currently undergoing repair and expansion.  Actually,  Puregold will start construction  in April and will open in De-cember, he said. 

    Road interconnection

    The Kapampangan region, which is composed  of eight barangays, is now connected  to the Poblacion. The road  project was funded from the coffers of the  municipality and a grant from the provincial government  with P5 million allocations from each  source for a total of P10 million, the mayor said.  The Kapampangan region is finished but the   Tagalog region is still undergoing  construction because it got caught in the  rainy season, Maglanque explained. But    y May, it  will be connected to the Poblacion, he added.  Flood-free roads  “My vision is to upgrade the major roads   of Candaba to free them  from flooding,” the mayor said.  Maglanque said a  road upgrading project worth P20 million   is now  finished and another P30 million will soon be in the  works. “We had our groundbreaking  last  February  for the upgrading and  connection of this P20 million road project and it  is now finished,” Maglanque    said.Our roads will be  passable even during the rainy season because  they are now elevated,  he said. We followed the same elevation of the  Mandasig flood control (which raised the road  to about 1.5 meters), he added. 

    Municipal hall with taxpayers’ lounge

    The mayor said the municipal hall building itself is also now undergoing  repair and extension at a cost of P10 million.   The funds came from  the Department of Public Works and High ways  (DPWH) upon the endorsement of Sen. Lito     Lapid, he added. When completed, the  municipal hall will have an air-conditioned taxpayers’  lounge and a waiting area with television sets.  By 2015, another P10 million will be earmarked  for the construction of a second      floor at the back of the municipal  hall which will have office spaces for each 10 councilors,  Maglanque said. Rep.  Agapito Guanlao of Butil partylist has  pledged another P5 million for department head  offices and a large parking        space will also be available at the back of  the building, he added. “I did this because Iwant services to  improve in Candaba,” Maglanque said. 

    Multi-purpose hall/ evacuation center

    The mayor said a multi-purpose hall which can double as an evacuation  center will begin construction in January.  It  will be called the Candaba Trade Center  Multi-Purpose Trade  Building, comprising an evacuation center, a  venue for any trade fair activity, and other municipal  and civil activities. “We had our groundbreaking  for the project last Dec.  18 and on January construction will  start,” he added.  Maglanque said some P18 million will be  spent for the project  with P8 million local funding  and another P10 million from 4th District Rep.  Rimpy Bondoc. All buildings will have  a  neo-classic design.  “Para kang nasa Spain  (It’s like being in Spain),” he said. 

    Local revenues

    While the local revenue is estimated at P11 million, the town actually  gets only P10 million according to the mayor.  “So we are now inviting more investors because  we have improved  our roads and facilities,”Maglanque said. So far, more than P100 million have been spent  for Candaba including local  funds for its makeover, Maglanque said. 

    Local produce

    The mayor said this first class town is still the number one rice-producing  municipality of Pampanga,  contributing 35 percent of Pampanga’s  rice production.  Maglanque said he also considers duck eggs  as the town’s main    agricultural  produce with a  daily production of one million duck eggs supplying  the balut industry of Pateros, among  others. He said he supports  the farmers by giving seeds directly to them,  providing insurance for their crops through  the Philippine Crop Insurance Corp. (PCIC), providing  them 21 hand tractors as well as a  back hoe from    the provincial  government for  the maintenance of their irrigation canals.  Maglanque also said  he makes sure that     farmto- market roads are in  good condition to help farmers bring their produce  to the Poblacion.  Soon, a community  hospital and a college  will be realized in our town, he assured.   

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