Somewhere at sea, a storm overtook them. For safety, they entered a channel, now called “Suba,” (a name of a place in Liloan) and proceeded into the interior.
History
Liloan is a first income class Municipality located within Metro Cebu in the islands of Visayas, Central Philippines. Known as “the Light of the North”, Liloan was founded in the year 1845, deriving its name from the word “lilo” or whirling waters, abundant along Liloan’s sprawling coastline. Liloan is composed of 14 Barangays and 237 Puroks, with a land area of approximately 5,210 hectares. 2021 estimates peg Liloan’s population at over 160,000, a significant portion of which makes up Metro Cebu’s professional and skilled workforce. Nestled between the mountains and the sea, Liloan is abundant in natural resources, with several protected marine sanctuaries that are home to rare and endangered corals and marine life, and a sprawling mountain range of lush forest, endemic trees and wildlife. Liloan’s topography and climate make it ideal for growing agricultural products such as mangoes, avocados, and a variety of vegetables. A growing economic hub in Metro Cebu, Liloan’s biggest industry is real estate with over 200 subdivisions and villages, home to an educated and skilled population. Liloan is host to a growing number of multi-national entities and light manufacturing industries such as furniture, electronic products, pottery and ceramics, bricks, food products for export, and the like. Liloan is home to the century-old Bagacay Point Lighthouse and the world-famous Titay’s Liloan Rosquillos. Among its attractions include a world-class golf course and golf academy, a waterpark and wakeboarding facility, and several beach and mountain resorts.
In 2021, Liloan will open its new domestic port, further establishing Liloan as a central and strategic hub for commerce and trade in Cebu, being already centrally located a mere 10 kilometers away from the Mactan Cebu International Airport. In 2019, Liloan was awarded the Top Model Municipality in the Philippines for its innovative and inclusive approach to governance and focus on sustainable development. In the same year it was granted national awards as the top Education Hub of the country for its successful scholarship program that has supported over 10,000 scholars over the years, top Retirement Hub for its programs promoting meaningful and joyful ageing among senior citizens, and Wealth Center Award for its business friendliness and forward-thinking programs on economic development. In 2019 and again in 2020, the Department of Trade and Industry awarded Liloan the Most Resilient Municipality in the Philippines. The award recognizes the capacity of a locality to facilitate businesses and industries, to create jobs, raise productivity, and increase the incomes of citizens over time despite the shocks and stresses it encounters. At the cusp of cityhood, the focus of the Local Government of Liloan under the administration of Mayor Christina Frasco has been to lay a solid foundation of governance centered on providing a high quality of life for its people through innovation, inclusivity and sustainability. The Local Government of Liloan is led by Mayor Ma. Esperanza Christina Frasco, a lawyer and law professor who practiced international arbitration, litigation, and corporate law prior to entering public service in 2016. Mayor Frasco is currently the President of the League of Municipalities of the Philippines (LMP) Cebu, and the National Vice President for the Visayas of the LMP National Directorate. Due to Mayor Frasco’s thrust for sustainable and inclusive development and multi-sectoral participation in community governance, Liloan has been given various recognitions and awards from several national and local award-giving bodies such as Best Local Government Unit (LGU) in Good Governance in Cebu from the Cebu Provincial Government and the Ramon Aboitiz Foundation, Inc. (RAFI); Green Champion LGU for Environmental Programs; Number 1 Municipality in Cebu, Champion in the SUKOD Anti-Illegal Drugs Program of the Province of Cebu, and Most Outstanding Youth Organization.
Liloan is a consistent recipient of the Department of Interior and Local Government Seal of Good Financial Housekeeping and Seal of Child- Friendly Local Governance. In 2016 and 2017, the Department of Labor and Employment awarded Liloan the Best Public Employment Service Office (PESO) in Region VII and in Cebu, and National Finalist as Best PESO in the Philippines. Liloan is the first LGU in the country to establish a fully federated Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender (LGBT) community in every barangay and in the entire Municipality. In the face of the Covid-19 global pandemic, Liloan has distinguished itself as a Local Government Unit by its proactive and innovative approach to addressing the challenges of ensuring effective governance despite increasing difficulties in access to services and opportunities. The Local Government of Liloan established an online health platform providing free medical consultations and services called Gugmed; it rolled out a weekly mobile market to give the community access to fresh produce and provide local vendors with continued income, as well as provide vegetable seedlings to families to promote food security. The LGU launched Project Lupad, an aerial drone monitoring system to ensure strict compliance with health and safety protocols across all Barangays; and Liloan Art Thrive, using the arts as a way for children and families to cope with the stresses of the pandemic. Harnessing technology to benefit the population, the Local Government launched its very own mobile application called LiveLoveLiloan, which provides frontline government services online, contact tracing measures, an online marketplace for local vendors, access to emergency services, and an electronic transport system providing convenient and predictable public transport, with all public utility vehicles in Liloan being installed with its own global positioning devices (GPS). Cushioning the impact of the global economic downturn upon its population, the Local Government of Liloan launched and continues to implement Liloan Works, an economic recovery program that provides rice and cash in exchange for community work such as planting trees, growing produce, street and coastal cleanups, and the like. Through the grit, hardwork and determination of the people of Liloan, and it’s Local Government’s resilience and stability, Liloan charges forward to a future brimming with hope and progress for its people.
