NOTING THE IMPORTANCE of timing and chemistry, the cause oriented group known as Samar Island Movement for Regional Advancement (SIMoRA) has revived an earlier call for the establishment of one Samar Region that would unite the provinces of Samar, Eastern Samar and Northern Samar into one geographical and political entity.
Last year, House Minority Leader Marcelino Libanan of 4Ps party-list took the cue from the creation of the Negros Island Region (NIR) and filed House Bill 10727 in August to decentralize and boost the delivery of government services by establishing the Samar Island Region (SIR).
Libanan rationalized that once his proposed measure is enacted, the dispensing of national government services to communities in the three Samar provinces will become more efficient because the island as a whole will have its own regional development council to drive economic growth and job creation.
OUR COMMON HOME
Taking the cue once again, as the present time is budget season and chemistry matters with the House of Representatives identified as the best organization to champion this cause, SIMoRA cited that the House Minority is not anti-administration and if diversity is an edge, then the 20th Congress must be providential as the Minority Leader is himself a Samarnon (or Samareño).
“That said, we the Samareños in Metro Manila call upon our agents, our representatives, our collective voice in the People’s House to harken to our appeal (…) it’s about time (to) look at our common home, the 3rd biggest island of Islas Filipinas—Samar Island—long ignored, long neglected, long disregarded.”
The group suggested to legislate the creation of One Samar Region which would pave the way for the creation of a Special Committee for Samar Island Growth and Development (SIGAD) in the Lower Chamber of Congress.
The group suggested to legislate the creation of One Samar Region which would pave the way for the creation of a Special Committee for Samar Island Growth and Development in the Lower Chamber of Congress.
ADMINISTRATIVE REGION
In the meantime that legislation is under process, the issuance by the President of an Executive Order establishing the Interim Samar Island Administrative Region would be most preferred until a law creating the One Samar Island Region is approved.
“Samareño professionals can be tapped to provide support services for this initiatory task. They can identify what needs to be done, in the right areas, for right purpose under a unified Samar Island Growth Agenda (SIGA),” SIMoRA suggested.
While this is ongoing, the group noted that departments, bureaus, offices, government-owned or -controlled corporations should be identified as these would be tasked to constitute the core organizational resource group, ie (a) the Department of Agriculture (DA), the island being agriculturally endowed; (b) the Department of Tourism (DoT), the island being historically and culturally rich, as well as geologically and naturally wonderful;
(c) the Department of Transportation (DoTr), Island being strategically situated and a major linked between the island groups of the archipelago: Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao; (d) the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) because of the island’s fragile ecosystem; (e) the Department of Labor and Employment (DoLE) because of the island’s trainable human resource; (f) the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) because of the Islands potential for trade investments and industries development;
(g) the Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) for the island’s vast land resources; (h) the Department of Science and Technology (DoST) due to the island’s vulnerability to natural disruptions; (i) the education and academic sector for the right mix of employable talents, and (j) the Department of I terror and Local Government (DILG) for the unqualified support of the local government units in the island.
Towards this end, the heads of these departments will be then asked to designate focal persons (preferably senior-ranked officials) in their respective agencies, to collaborate department efforts toward this goal.