The comprehensive land use plans (CLUPs) of the highly-urbanized cities (HUCs) of Bacolod and Iloilo are now up for ratification by the Secretary of Department of Human Settlements and Urban Development (DHSUD), the final stage of the review and approval of the plan documents.
The Regional Land Use Committee (RLUC) VI transmitted the finalized CLUP of Bacolod City to the DHSUD on April 28, 2022 for the ratification of the Secretary. The committee also transmitted the CLUP of Iloilo City on September 27, 2021 and is set to be reviewed for ratification this month.
In an unprecedented feat, the RLUC VI has completed the review of the CLUPs of Bacolod City and Iloilo City in two separate special sessions within one year and with the highest participation rate of its members actively collaborating in the review.
Seventeen out of the 18 reviewing members of the RLUC composed of government agencies and the private sectors, have submitted their review inputs. These are crucial to the refinement of the CLUPs to ensure their quality and compliance with existing government rules and regulations as well as planning practices.
The review of the CLUPs also adopted a hybrid protocol, a first of its kind, considering the safety of the reviewers from getting infected of COVID-19 and the logistical challenges in previous practices.
“We imposed an alternative to face-to-face gatherings and took advantage of the technology available. An online one-stop shared folder replaced the usual hard copy dissemination. Members are also guided by the standardized review forms so that their assessment parameters only focus within their mandates,” Ms. Joyalita B. Tigres, Chief Economic Development Specialist of the Policy Formulation and Planning Division and Technical Coordinator and Secretary of RLUC VI shared.
The pilot implementation of the online one-stop shared folder was done during the review of Iloilo City last May-August 2021, which proved successful and was also utilized in the review of Bacolod City this December-March 2022.
With the optimism and support of the RLUC VI, the CLUPs of these two HUCs are expected to be ratified by the DHSUD Secretary before the change in the administration. (PFPD/RAMacalalag)
