Senators pledge to fund new Capitol site in Balamban as civil works make progress

The Cebu Provincial Capitol building dome. The Capitol was conceptualized to be positioned at the end of the long avenue conceived by American architect William E. Parsons in his 1912 plan of Cebu. | CDN FILE PHOTO

CEBU CITY, Philippines – The Cebu Provincial Government is pushing through with its plans of transferring the seat of power to Balamban town in western Cebu.

The Capitol, in a report from its news portal Sugbo News, announced that the Department of Public Works and Highways in Central Visayas (DPWH-7) is targeting to complete site development for the replica of the Capitol building within this year. 

DPWH-7 is also aiming to finish foundational works at an earlier date. Instead of November, they told the provincial government that they may be able to achieve it this July, Sugbo News added. 

On the other hand, the Capitol disclosed that several national officials have pledged to provide funding for the construction of its new headquarters in Balamban. 

Among those that committed were Senators Sonny Angara and Francis Tolentino. Angara pledged to provide P100 million for the construction of the edifice while Tolentino will be granting the Capitol P80 million to develop connecting roads.

The provincial government plans to put the new Capitol on a 50-hectare property in Balamban, with the Executive Building itself occupying 2.3 hectares. 

As of February 7, it has secured at least 17.5 hectares. 

Cebu Governor Gwendolyn Garcia first revealed her plans to transfer the province’s seat of power to Balamban, a first-class municipality that borders Cebu City in the west, in 2020. 

Should the plan be successful, they will convert the existing Capitol building, a National Historical Landmark, in Escario Street, uptown Cebu City into a museum.

/bmjo

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