President Benigno Aquino III has signed into law the bill creating the 7th legislative district in Cebu, a move seen to boost development efforts in the south.
The next step is to ensure extra seats for a congressman and Provincial Board Members for the new district.
Cebu Gov. Hilario Davide III said he got a call from Malacañang yesterday informing him that the President signed House Bill 44277.
Davide suggested to Cebu 2nd District Rep. Wilfredo Caminero to request the Commission on Elections (Comelec) for the issuance of a supplemental resolution for the allocation of seats for the new congressional district.
Caminero is the principal author of House Bill 4427.
The new 7th district consists of the southwest towns of Dumanjug, Ronda, Alcantara, Moalboal, Badian, Alegria, Malabuyoc and Ginatilan.
The new district was carved out of the second district, which will be left with the towns of Argao, Dalaguete, Alcoy, Boljoon, Oslob, Santander and Samboan.
Aug. 31 was the last day to allocate elective seats for the House of Representatives and other local elective positions.
But Governor Davide said Comelec may still amend its resolution to extend the deadline.
The Liberal Party (LP) in Cebu will be fielding PB Member Peter John Calderon to run for a congressional seat in the new 7th district.
Calderon, in a phone interview, said that yesterday was a “good day for the people of the second and seventh districts.”
Asked about his election bid, he said he “can always stand by a seat in the provincial board.”
“Nothing is final until it is final,” he added.
His twin brother Samboan Mayor Raymund Joseph Calderon will run for Peter John’s seat in the PB.
As for the new seat for the 7th district, PB Member Christopher Baricuatro and Badian Vice Mayor Jerome Librando are being considered .
“We will leave that to Congressman Caminero and the leaders (in the district),” said Davide, LP Cebu chairman.
The governor said he received a call from Malacañang yesterday, informing him that Aquino signed House Bill 4427 on Thursday.
The bill would have become a law even without the President’s signature by Sept. 28, or one month after receipt in his office.
The Senate approved the bill on July 28, but it was transmitted to the Office of the President only a month later. The Senate version was sponsored by Sen. Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr., chairman of the committee on local government.
The new district has a combined population of 200,092 as of the 2010 census while the remaining towns of the second district have a combined population of 223,360.
Aside from Caminero, other authors of the bill were Cebu 3rd District Rep. Gwendolyn Garcia, 4th District Rep. Benhur Salimbangon and Lapu-Lapu City District Rep. Aileen Radaza.