Leyte Gov. Carlos Petilla—Inquirer photo Leyte Rep. Richard Gomez—Richard Gomez FB page
TACLOBAN CITY, LEYTE, Philippines — Leyte Gov. Carlos Jericho Petilla and 41 mayors are opposing a proposal to split the province, saying this will disrupt its economic progress.
“I don’t see any valid reason why Leyte should be split into two provinces other than for political reasons,” Petilla said.
“There is an economic subscale when it comes to size. The bigger you are, the better you can actually manage your resources. So splitting is not developmental; it’s actually regressive,” he added.
Since Leyte’s strength lies in its unity, local leaders should focus on improving governance and resource management for the Eastern Visayas province, the governor said.
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The League of Municipalities of the Philippines–Leyte Chapter, led by Palo Mayor Remedios Petilla, shared the same sentiments and passed a manifesto rejecting House Bill No. 11077 during the mayors’ final quarterly meeting on Dec. 14.
“We have come up with a manifesto strongly opposing this plan to divide Leyte. Those who attended the meeting signed it, and others who couldn’t attend also expressed their intent to sign,” said Mayor Petilla, the governor’s mother.
“The reason for the division is totally uncalled for. We love Leyte, and Leyte is the most developed province in the region,” she added.
Linguistic differences
Last month, Rep. Richard Gomez, who represents Leyte’s fourth congressional district, filed HB 11077 seeking to create the new province of Western Leyte, to cover areas where Cebuano is the predominant language.
The remaining parts of Leyte, including Tacloban City, would comprise areas where Waray is predominantly spoken.
The proposed province of Western Leyte will include towns under Gomez’s district—Albuera, Kananga, Matag-ob, Merida, Palompon and Isabel—and the independent component city of Ormoc, where his wife, Lucy, serves as mayor.
Also to belong in the proposed province are the municipalities of Calubian, Leyte, San Isidro, Tabango, Villaba, Bato, Hilongos, Hindang, Inopacan and Matalom, and the city of Baybay. These areas cover 2,852.16 square kilometers and have a combined population of over 958,400, according to the 2020 census.
Gomez argued that linguistic differences and the need for more accessible medical services justified the split, claiming that creating a new province would result in faster economic development and better governance.
“The creation of the province of Western Leyte is expected to further boost the socioeconomic growth of the western side of Leyte, as well as strengthen governance for all aspects of local government units,” Gomez said in his explanatory note.
His proposal is pending before the House committee on local government.
Of the 42 mayors of Leyte, only Kananga Mayor Manuel Vicente Torres, Gomez’s brother-in-law, was expected to support the bill.
Governor Petilla pointed out that past proposals to divide Leyte, including one backed by his relatives, failed due to lack of public support.
“Even residents of these areas don’t want Leyte to be divided,” he said, expressing confidence that Gomez’s proposal would face the same fate.
Leyte, the 13th largest province in the Philippines by land area, spans 6,313.33 sq km with 40 towns and three cities, and a population of over 1.77 million.
Leyte previously ceded territory to create the provinces of Southern Leyte and Biliran, but Governor Petilla argued that splitting the province further was unnecessary.