San Fernando and Mexico: From boom towns to a city

THE TOWN of San Fernando, the

provincial capital of Pampanga, and its

eastern side, Mexico, are thriving

communities on its way to becoming a

self-sustained component city. And rightfully so: it's a financial

and trade hub bustling with commercial activity. When the lahar

flowed up to a few years ago, San Fernando held out and

continued to do business while Mexico became the home for

thousand of Pinatubo calamity victims.

San Fernando grew in a province of rich historical significance.

Its people, the Kapampangans, descended from the people of a

mass exodus fleeing the strife of the Madjapahit Empire in

Central Java, from 300 to 200 B.C. The people settled along the

rivers of the Central Luzon basin, and prospered as agricultural

and metalworking communities, doing commerce with Chinese

traders who sailed here from the Asian mainland.

These communities eventually formed an empire. Around 1330

AD, a noble named Balagtas forged alliances among these

independent tribes and consolidated them into a kingdom.

Balagtas then led a series of conquests that brought his power

southward to present-day Manila and northward to Cagayan.

He formed a government that upheld a code of laws, which

perpetuated central authority for his successors. The empire of

Balagtas disintegrated only with its defeat by the Spanish

conquistadores in the 1500s. Three centuries later, the

Kapampangans joined the revolution to throw off the Spanish

yoke. Majority of the residents belong to the Roman Catholic

Church, but there are religious denominations within local

community such as Felix Manalo's Iglesia ni Cristo.

Mexico, on the other hand, used to be the port for passenger

and cargo ships when water transportation was still the primary

means of traveling. It was then the primary trading center in

Eastern Pampanga. It has a population of 79,301 people

distributed among the 43 barangays.

And a century hence, San Fernando is strategically located

within Manila-Clark-Subic Economic triangle. It has been the

major center for trade, industry and investment in Central Luzon.

Over the last year alone, the number of businesses here nearly

doubled, from 776 in 1998 to 1,356 this year. The municipality

has an estimated land area of about 6,900 hectares and it is

composed of 34 barangays.

Investors eye San Francisco and Mexico because of its

proximity to Manila (only 67 kilometers by highway; 45 minutes

to Balintawak Toll Gate; 30 minutes to Clark Economic Zone; 3

minutes to Paskuhan Village and Ever-Gotesco Commercial

Complex). The town, with the neighboring municipality of

Mexico, attracted investments totaling P1.4 billion, a 265 percent

rise over last year's P338 million.

And a small town it isn't. San Fernando is noted for its sugar

industry and for its finest taste of potable water which is a

melting pot for big investments in real estate, manufacturing and

commercial ventures. It has over a hundred residential

subdivisions and a concentration of 39 banks, 70 fast-food

chains and restaurants, 39 public and private schools, 48

lending investors, 42 insurance firms, among others.

The town itself has a national sports arena, a convention center

and an attractive showcase of indigenous products. San

Francisco has been the favorite tourist attraction for its Holy

Week reenactment of the crucifixion of Jesus Christ and for its

yearly lantern festival. The literacy level here registers a high

above average of 99 percent.

Municipal mayors Ernesto Punsalan (Mexico) and Dr. Rey B.

Aquino (San Fernando) have been passionately working to

develop these towns in Pampanga into a tourism and

investment haven in Central Luzon.

With the infusion of investment reflect confidence and will

generate the impact rising level of employment. Two local

companies have expressed confidence with the economic

potentials of San Fernando and Mexico. SM Holdings Inc. has

confirmed that it will build a huge shopping complex and Sta.

Lucia Realty and Development Inc. will construct residential,

golf and commercial estates between San Fernando and Mexico,

an A-class hotel are expected to rise in these areas.

A movement to convert this growing agro-industrial-commercial

metropolis to a truly self-sustaining integral city in Central

Luzon has already been initiated by town officials and other

sectoral leaders. This motion intends to increase the town's

revenue to implement other development projects and improve

the quality of delivery of basic services to the people of San

Fernando and Mexico.

San Fernando and Mexico will soon become the key center in

Central Luzon as projected by a government study prior to the

eruption of Mt. Pinatubo in 1990.