Cagayan de Oro, the city of golden friendship in Mizamiz Oriental, is extending its ties to the city of great leaders in Ilocos Norte’s Batac City. On Monday, Batac City Mayor Albert Chua and his team received a warm welcome from his counterpart, Cagayan de Oro Mayor Rolando Uy, for the signing of a memorandum of agreement for the implementation of the “Sister Cities Program’, which serves as a platform to foster understanding and cultivate friendship in the pursuit of partnerships in trade, economic, and human resource development, culture, and the arts. ‘I believe that Cagayan de Oro, as well as Batac City, has so much to offer. As the world evolves rapidly, we need a heightened exchange of ideas for the betterment of our people,’ Chua told the Philippine News Agency when asked about the gains from the sisterhood pact. Under the MOA, both parties should enhance mutual understanding and goodwill as well as technical exchange and cooperation on various dimensions of local governance. Both cities are also expected to establish information-sharing mechanisms of activities related to their common interest. Chua, in his speech, vowed to follow the steps taken by Cagayan de Oro after learning first-hand the best practices such as those on volunteerism. “After we have learned a lot about your policies and programs on local governance, we will emulate and replicate them in our city of Batac for the good of our constituents,” he said. Cagayan de Oro became a chartered city in 1950 and has become the transportation and commercial hub of northern Mindanao. Its international airport is a major stopover for flights south, and the city is the northern terminus of the Trans-Mindanao Sayre Highway. Exports include rice, corn (maize), and copra. Popularly known as the “Home of the Great Leaders,” Batac, meanwhile, has earned the title because three prominent people, who rendered notable services to the country, once lived here. These are former President Ferdinand E. Marcos Sr., who was born in Sarrat town but spent most of his life in Batac City; Bishop Gregorio Aglipay; and General Artemio Ricarte.
Source: Philippines News Agency
