Mandaue needs good urban planning

Business leaders are urging the Mandaue City government leaders to achieve its maximum potential as the Business Center in Cebu province by seriously putting in place good urban or central planning

 “Mandaue has a better chance of becoming not only a Business Center in Cebu province, but in the entire country as well. But the local government should apply a good urban planning mechanism,” said Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCCI) president Samie Lim.

Lim was one of the guests during the Mandaue Chamber of Commerce and Industry (MCCI) organized Business Forum, which formally kicked off the Mandaue Business Month celebration this year.

The edge of Mandaue City, as home to global manufacturing industries, like the Furniture, home furnishing, fashion accessories, and other industries should be capitalized in order to attract more investments to the City.

For his part, Cebu Business Club (CBC) president Dondi Joseph said that with the new batch of young executives leading the Mandaue City government, he is optimistic that the City could achieve its potential, but focus and serious attention for development is a crucial issue.
Kicking out the dirty political issues could turn around the City’s present state, he added.
 Already, Mandaue City has a lot of good attractions to lure investors, as it implements the lowest business tax, and other incentives for businesses.

 “Mandaue City is now run with young and energetic people. They have the energy and vision,” Joseph added.

Although, the business sector in Mandaue led by the MCCI has been re-charging its batteries to help the local government unit in achieving the full development of the City, Joseph said “private sector can only do so much.”

Joseph added that it is important for the City to “start somewhere” and its local executives should “come to the table” to focus on development politics, rather and attending futile political issues.

In an earlier interview newly installed Mandaue City administrator Briccio Joseph C. Boholst, he said that there is still a lot of things the city has to do, in order to be a true player in the globalization arena.

But Joseph believes that if the city’s LGU leaders will have a “political will” to start somewhere, and strongly implement developmental programs, it can even out-perform larger and well-known cities in the Philippines.

According to Boholst, the priority now of the Mandaue City administration is to fix the infrastructure in order to complement the high interest of investors now, and that it could really be a true global player. – Ehda M. Dagooc