ZAMBOANGA CITY (MindaNews / 24 Dec) – The local governments of the sister cities Davao and Zamboanga are the only two in Mindanao that made it to the country’s 10 richest cities, according to the Commission on Audit (COA).
In its consolidated 2020 Annual Financial Report for the Local Government, COA said that Davao’s wealth was at P23.664 billion with current assets (CA) of P14.172 billion and non-current assets (NCA) of P9.493 billion while Zamboanga had total assets of P19.775 billion (CA P8.145 billion and NCA of PhP11.630 billion).
Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte and Zamboanga City Mayor Maria Isabelle Climaco signed on behalf of their respective local governments a city sisterhood agreement on July 2021.
The two lady mayors were the country’s representatives in the United States’ Visiting International Leaders Program in 2017.
According to the COA report, the leading city assets-wise is Quezon City, led by Mayor Joy Belmonte, having total assets worth P452.333 billion in 2020.
Quezon City was followed by Makati under Mayor Mar-Len Abigail Binay with total assets of P238.465 billion, next is the City of Manila under Mayor Francisco “Isko Moreno” Domagoso with total assets of P76.547 billion, Pasig City under Mayor Victor Maria Regis “Vico” Sotto with P49.548 billion, Cebu City then led by the late Mayor Edgardo Labella with P34.754 billion, Mandaue City under Mayor Jonas Cortes with P32.571 billion, Taguig City headed by Mayor Lino Cayetano having total assets worth P30.682 billion.
Davao City followed at eighth place, and Zamboanga City at 10th. In between them, at ninth, is Caloocan City under Mayor Oscar Malapitan with PP22,203 billion assets.
No municipality in Mindanao was noted to be among the 10 richest municipalities in 2020.
Among the provinces, Davao de Oro led by Gov. Jayvee Tyron Uy was fourth richest with assets of P20.391 billion while and Surigao del Norte under Gov. Francisco Matugas was eighth with P15.737 billion. Surigao del Norte was among those badly hit by super typhoon “Odette.”
The 2020 Report, which was submitted to President Rodrigo Duterte and House Speaker Lord Allan Jay Velasco, was signed by COA Chairperson Michael Aguinaldo on November 25, 2021. (Frencie L. Carreon / MindaNews)