27/05/2026
๐๐ก๐๐ฉ๐ข๐ง๐ ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐
๐ฎ๐ญ๐ฎ๐ซ๐ ๐จ๐ ๐๐๐ง๐๐๐ง: ๐๐๐ ๐๐จ๐ง๐ฏ๐๐ง๐๐ฌ ๐๐ฌ๐ญ ๐๐๐ ๐ฎ๐ฅ๐๐ซ ๐๐๐๐ญ๐ข๐ง๐ ; ๐๐จ๐ฎ๐ง๐๐ข๐ฅ๐จ๐ซ ๐๐๐ ๐จ๐ง๐จ๐ ๐๐๐ข๐ฌ๐๐ฌ ๐๐ฅ๐๐ซ๐ฆ ๐๐ฏ๐๐ซ ๐๐ฒ๐ง๐๐ข๐๐๐ญ๐๐ ๐๐๐ง๐ ๐๐ซ๐๐๐๐ข๐ง๐ ๐๐ง๐ ๐๐ฅ๐ฅ๐๐ ๐๐ฅ ๐ฌ๐ช๐ฎ๐๐ญ๐ญ๐ข๐ง๐
GENERAL SANTOS CITY โ Charting the developmental roadmap for a more progressive and secure city, the City Development Council (CDC) successfully convened its 1st Regular Meeting on Tuesday, May 26, 2026. Held from 8:00 AM to 2:30 PM at the Pandan B Hall of the Greenleaf Hotel, the high-level assembly brought together local officials, department heads, and stakeholders to deliberate on critical socioeconomic and infrastructural agendas for General Santos.
The meeting focused heavily on fiscal programming, future partnerships, and pressing localized issues, echoing the shared vision of achieving a truly inclusive "Magandang Gensan."
Key Agenda and Policy Adoptions
The council tackled a dense list of administrative and development priorities designed to optimize city resources and streamline public services. The core agendas discussed and acted upon during the session included:
- Amendment of the 2026 Annual Investment Plan (AIP) via Supplemental Investment Program (SIP) No. 03: Adjustments were evaluated to realign current budgets with the city's immediate operational and community needs.
- Adoption of the 2027 Annual Investment Plan (AIP): Setting the financial and project blueprint for the upcoming fiscal year to ensure long-term continuity in local governance.
- Adoption of the Local Governance Canvass:* Reaffirming standards for local governance metrics and performance indicators.
- Presentation of the List of Public-Private Partnership (PPP) Projects: Highlighting prospective flagship joint ventures aimed at boosting local infrastructure, technology, and economic opportunities without straining public coffers.
Councilor Bagonoc Champions Sectoral Voices, Exposes Syndicated Land Grabbing and illegal squatting
A defining and urgent segment of the meeting came to the fore when Hon. Elizabeth B. Bagonoc took the floor. Known for her vigilant stance on grassroots welfare and public administration, Councilor Bagonoc shifted the spotlight toward an escalating crisis threatening peace and order in the city: the alarming rise of syndicated land grabbing and illegal squatting.
Councilor Bagonoc firmly called out the illicit networks and syndicates actively manipulating land titles and exploiting vulnerable areas. She emphasized that these malicious actors are aggressively targeting both private estates and public domains, creating volatile disputes, undermining legitimate property owners, and stalling actual government development projects.
"We cannot talk about seamless city development if the very land our citizens build on is being lawlessly targeted by syndicates," Bagonoc stressed, urging local law enforcement and regulatory bodies to clamp down heavily on these fraudulent activities.
A Push for True Sectoral Representation
To combat these syndicates and ensure equitable urban development, Councilor Bagonoc heavily emphasized the absolute necessity of robust sectoral representation within the council's decision-making frameworks. She argued that without a strong, institutionalized voice representing the urban poor, farmers, fisherfolk, and indigenous communities, marginalized sectors remain highly susceptible to exploitation by land grabbers.
By strengthening sectoral seats in local governance, the city can create a more transparent, defensive shield for vulnerable communities, ensuring their ancestral and residential rights are fiercely protected in every future city blueprint.
Moving Forward
The 1st Regular Meeting of the CDC concluded with a clear consensus: while economic expansion through PPPs and AIPs remains paramount, it must be balanced by strict enforcement of the law and proactive defense of land rights.
Through the collaborative vigilance of leaders like Councilor Bagonoc and the collective action of the CDC, General Santos City positions itself not just to grow bigger, but to grow fairerโsafeguarding its lands and empowering its people for the years ahead.