BONTOC, Mountain Province The Cordillera Regional Development Council (RDC-CAR) passed a resolution urging all concerned regional government line agencies, local government units (LGUs), civil society organizations and other concerned entities to actively participate in the 30th year commemoration of the founding of the Cordillera Administrative Region (CAR) in July 2017.
The RDC-CAR underscored pursuant to Executive Order No. 220’s objective to prepare the CAR for regional autonomy, all government instrumentalities operating in the region are enjoined to actively participate and allocate funds for their participation in the month-long celebration.
The theme of this year’s Cordillera month celebration is “A Celebration of Cordillera Unity,” and the month-long activities is being coordinated by the Committee on Indigenous People’s Concerns (CIPC) with the provincial government of Benguet as host local government unit.
The Cordillera month is annually celebrated to commemorate the creation of the CAR and instill in the people of the region an enhanced awareness and deeper appreciation of its history and aspirations of becoming an autonomous region.
Among the lined up activities for this celebration include Kapihan for the launching of the celebration on June 28, 2017; Unity Gong Relay from July 8-15, 2017; provincial celebrations on July 8-15, 2017; tree planting from July 9-15, 2017; Cordillera Day culmination program and parade on July 15, 2017; coffee pavilion and trade exhibit on July 15, 2017; Cordillera Got Talent competition and Shayoney fashion show subject to arrangements by the organizers; Cultural Summit – celebrating Cordillera heritage on July 28, 2017; Second ;International Conference on Cordillera Studies on July 12-14, 2017, and autonomy theatre shows to be arranged in the different parts of the region.
Because of the provisions of Section 15 to 21, Article 10 of the Philippine Constitution that mandated the establishment of autonomous regions in Muslim Mindanao and the Cordillera, former President Corazon C. Aquino, who was then exercising both executive and legislative powers under the revolutionary government, issued Executive Order No. 220 on July 15, 1987 which created the CAR composed of the provinces of Abra, Benguet, Mountain Province and the City of Baguio from Region I and the provinces of Ifugao and Kalinga-Apayao from Region II.
EO 220 had three major purposes: to administer the affairs of government in the region, to accelerate the socio-economic development of the region, and prepare the region for autonomy.
The Cordillera remains to be one of the two regions which have always been left behind in the allocation of the government resources owing it to the fact that it has a low population density compared to other regions.
By HENT
