Cebu Province continues to assert its status as an economic powerhouse, with six municipalities now meeting the qualifications for cityhood under Republic Act No. 11683, the amended Local Government Code of 1991.
RA 11683 simplifies the conversion of municipalities into component cities by removing the population requirement for LGUs that meet both income and land area thresholds. Specifically, a municipality may qualify if it has:
✔ An average annual income of ₱100 million, based on 2020 constant prices, as certified by the Department of Finance
✔ And either a contiguous territory of at least 100 sq. km or a population of at least 150,000.
This change has made way for more towns—especially rural and tourism-based municipalities like Moalboal and Oslob—to become cityhood contenders, even with smaller populations.
🏙️ Three Towns Have Already Filed Cityhood Bills
Three have filed official cityhood bills under the 19th Congress:
- Liloan – House Bill No. 5031, filed by Rep. Duke Frasco
- Consolacion – House Bill No. 1324, filed by Reps. Daphne and Sonny Lagon
- Balamban – House Bill No. 1018, filed by Rep. PJ Garcia, with full qualifications and an active campaign for conversion
These LGUs have demonstrated economic resilience, growing urban centers, and strong administrative capacity—factors that have fueled their drive to become full-fledged cities.
🆕 Four More Towns Qualify
Recently, Balamban, Oslob, Argao and Moalboal crossed the qualifying thresholds in income or land area, joining Liloan, Minglanilla, and Consolacion. Their inclusion showcases how strategic tourism, investment, and infrastructure have transformed these towns into viable urban centers.
⚠️ Roadblocks to Cityhood
Despite meeting all legal requirements, the journey to cityhood is not always smooth. One of the major hurdles comes from the League of Cities of the Philippines (LCP), which often opposes new city conversions due to the impact on the National Tax Allotment (NTA)—the newer term for the Internal Revenue Allotment (IRA).
With more cities dividing the same national tax pool, existing cities worry about decreased funding, which could affect their own development priorities. This has resulted in slower approvals and tighter scrutiny for cityhood bills in recent years.
in the last three years, only two new cities were created, Carmona, Cavite ans Baliwag, Bulacan.
Still, local leaders remain hopeful. In Cebu, cityhood is seen not just as a status upgrade, but as a path to better services, infrastructure, and local autonomy.
📈 A Sign of Cebu’s Expanding Growth
The rise of these seven cityhood-ready municipalities is a clear reflection of Cebu’s decentralizing economic development. As Metro Cebu continues to expand, more towns across the province are growing into independent hubs—bringing services, business opportunities, and development closer to communities.
As of today, the seven Cebu municipalities qualified for cityhood are:
✅ Liloan
✅ Minglanilla
✅ Consolacion
✅ Balamban
✅ Oslob
✅ Argao
✅ Moalboal
Other municipalities now being closely monitored for potential qualification include Compostela, San Fernando, Daanbantayan, Cordova and other fast growing LGUs in both the north and south.
Today, all cities in Cebu are within the Metro Cebu agglomeration except for Bogo City and Toledo City, but the latter is also adjacent to Cebu City so only Bogo City can be truly considered as separate growth corridor for now, but soon, Oslob, Argao and Moalboal will likewise drive progress in Southern Cebu.
📰 InfoCebu will continue to follow these developments as part of our ongoing commitment to reporting on Cebu’s growth and governance.
#CebuCityhood #CebuRising #InfoCebu #RA11683 #CityhoodWatch #CebuDevelopment
InfoCebu 