Why Carmona in Cavite is set to lose title as Philippines’ richest municipality

CAVITE, Philippines – With total assets of P6.212 billion, Carmona in Cavite was the richest municipality in 2021, based on the latest Annual Financial Report of the Commission on Audit (COA). 

Carmona will lose that distinction, however, once it is converted into a component city, and the prospect of that happening is almost certain. 

The bill seeking Carmona’s cityhoold was approved by the Senate  committee on local government in late September, after having been been re-filed only last June 30 and substituted on August 24.

House Bill No. 3968 was earlier passed by the House of Representatives. It was authored by Cavite 6th District Representative Roy Loyola, a former mayor of Carmona and whose wife is the current mayor, and Cavite 1st District Representative Jolo Revilla.

“Labindalawang taon na ang na ang lumipas mula nang simulan nating mangarap na maging ganap na siyudad ang mahal nating bayan ng Carmona. Ngayon, ikinagagalak kong ipaalam sa inyo na malapit nang matupad ang pangarap na ito,” Loyola said in a Facebook post on September 30, after the bill passed the Senate committee level. 

(For 12 years, we’ve been dreaming of cityhood for our beloved Carmona. I am glad to inform you that the dream will soon become a reality.)

Should the cityhood bill become law, and be ratified in a plebiscite, Carmona will become the eighth city in the province after Cavite City, Trece Martires, Tagaytay, Dasmariñas, Bacoor, Imus, and General Trias.

Under Republic Act 11683, a municipality with an annual income of at least P400 million for two consecutive years can be converted into a component city if it has a population of at least 100,000 or a land area of at least 100 square kilometers. 

While Carmona’s land area falls short of at only 29.75 square kilometers, it has a population of 106,256, as of the 2020 census – more than the minimum required. 

COA’s assessment of local government assets included cash, cash equivalents and receivables, non-current assets, property, plant, and equipment. – Rappler.com