Samal Island next Boomtown

GRIM REMINDERS? — Someone up there is just reminding us again through calamities — natural or otherwise — including man-made ones. We have a long string already: Luneta hostaging, Sendong, Pablo, Zamboanga siege, PDAF & DAP, floods everywhere, ambuscades, killings. And now this Bohol earthquake. This should be grim reminders of life’s vagaries in this finite world of ours. We are merely passing through in a journey. What matters most is the INFINITY to where that journey leads us. This should shudder us back to reality. In the meantime, let’s all help the suffering Boholanos.
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SAMAL ISLAND — I revisited beautiful and pulsating Samal Island again last week. I sat in during a Sangguniang Panlungsod regular session day with young Vice Mayor DAVID UY presiding. I got the impression that ISLAND GARDEN CITY OF SAMAL (IGACOS) is now gearing up for massive tourism and residential development never seen before. Mayor ANING ANTALAN is setting up his city as the next boomtown.
I could see that there’s so much traffic from the mainland to the island especially during weekends. I was told two (2) additional barges of ASIAN MARINE are just waiting for clearance and permits to add shuttle services across in addition to the BANGAYAN’S ferry barges. Healthy competition is always good for the public.
Plans are also afoot for the installation of more power generating capacities that are “embedded” right there in the island — rather than transmitted from the mainland grid through a submarine cable that can carry only a maximum of 5 megawatts. Samal Island’s development may just “burst” soon and 5 MW of power may not be enough by then. If an “embedded” generating plant, say 10 MW is operational, DANECO’S submarine cable can be transferred to Talicud Island to also light it up. Lots of possibilities ahead.
Real estate development is on the upswing throughout the island and a visitor can immediately see it by just being there. I told VICE MAYOR DAVID that EKRAN BERHAD of Malaysian TANG SRI TENG can still be re-activated.
I heard the “carrying capacity” of Boracay for tourists has reached its peak. Everyone is now looking at Samal Island as the next tourism boomtown. Get ready folks!
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