Place:Calamba, Laguna, CALABARZON, Philippines

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Calamba, officially known as the City of Calamba, is a 1st class component city in the province of Laguna, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 539,671 people.

It is the regional center of the Calabarzon region. It is situated south of Manila and west of Santa Cruz. The city is known as the "Spring Resort Capital of the Philippines" because of its numerous hot spring resorts, which are mostly located in Barangays Pansol, Bucal, Bagong Kalsada, and Lingga.

According to the 2020 census, the city has a population of 539,671 people, making it the most populous local government unit in Laguna. It is the fifth-densest city in the province with more than 2,600 people per square kilometer after San Pedro, Biñan, Cabuyao, and Santa Rosa. Based on the overall rankings of the 2014 Cities and Municipalities Index, the city ranked 18th in the overall competitiveness (cities ranking) and first among cities in the Calabarzon region. The city is known to be the Calabarzon's richest city, followed by Cabuyao City, because of its numerous factories.

Calamba is the hometown of the de facto Philippine national hero, José Rizal.

History

the text in this section is copied from an article in Wikipedia

Early history

The oldest part of Calamba is believed to be Barangay Sucol where its first settlers remained. With the arrival of Spaniards, the whole area was converted into a hacienda, then a part of Tabuco (present-day Cabuyao). In 1639 Calamba was the site of a rebellion of Chinese farmers, who had been forcibly resettled there by Governor Sebastian Hurtado de Corcuera. This rebellion spread north of the Pasig River and eventually culminated in the deaths of over 20,000 Chinese in the whole region surrounding Manila. Calamba became an independent pueblo on August 28, 1742, and formed into the town of Calamba in 1770. In 1813, Calamba was placed in the hands of "encargados" by the Dominican Brothers, who divided it into portions and sold the haciendas to the natives during the American regime.

World War II

During the Japanese occupation in World War II, the city was the location of a massacre committed by the Imperial Japanese Army, in which at least 2,000 civilians were killed. The St. John the Baptist Church, established in 1859, was burned by the Japanese during World War II. It was reconstructed by Fr. Eliseo Dimaculangan. It was the christening site of José Rizal. The original baptismal font has been preserved and refurbished.

Cityhood

After a process of more than seven years, Calamba became the second component city of the Laguna by virtue of Republic Act No. 9024, "An Act Converting the Municipality of Calamba, Province of Laguna into a Component City to be known as the City of Calamba." R.A. 9024 was signed into law by President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo on March 5, 2001, at the Malacañan Palace. The Commission on Elections (COMELEC) then set the plebiscite for Calamba's cityhood on April 21, 2001, where 15,056 residents participated. 3,413 or 22.67% voted "No" while the remaining 77.33% voted "Yes" to Calamba's conversion into a component city.^[1]

Events leading to Cityhood

As early as 1994, the town's Sangguniang Bayan approved Resolution No. 60, Series of 1994 requesting the Senate of the Philippines through its president and the House of Representatives through its speaker to co-sponsor a bill for Calamba's conversion into a city. It was only after two years that another resolution, Resolution No. 115 was passed requesting then Congressman Joaquin M. Chipeco Jr, to co-sponsor a bill for Calamba's cityhood and requesting the Sangguniang Panlalawigan for their comments and recommendations regarding the matter. Another two years passed before House Bill No. 986 and Senate bill Nos. 1630 and 1791 were filed in the House of Representatives by Congressman Chipeco and Senate of the Philippines by Senators Franklin M. Drilon and Sergio Osmeña III, respectively.

It was only in the year 2000 that the motion for Calamba's cityhood was fast tracked. Then Mayor Severino J. Lajara requested favorable endorsement of House Bill No. 986 from the Sangguniang Panlalawigan on January 3, 2000. The Sangguniang Bayan also endorsed House Bill No. 986 and Senate Bill Nos. 1630 and 1791 and also requested favorable endorsement from the Sangguniang Panlalawigan in the same month. A month passed and Mayor Lajara sent a follow-up letter to then Vice Governor Teresita "Ningning" Lazaro on updates regarding the matter.

On March 8, the House Committee on Local Government approved House Bill No. 986 on 2nd reading at a hearing held at Hotel Rembrandt, Quezon City. The same House Committee conducted a public hearing on House Bill No. 986 at the Calamba Elementary School (Central II) gymnasium on March 23, approving the House Bill in principle. House Bill 986 was deliberated in April by the House of Representatives in plenary session and approved as House Bill No. 10661, which was then filed with the Senate of the Philippines in June.

The year 2001 came and brought about approval on 2nd reading of Senate Bill Nos. 1630 and 1791 and House Bill No. 10661 in a hearing held on February 5 at the Ambrocio Padilla Hall, Senate of the Philippines. Three days later, February 8, Senate Bill Nos. 1630 and 1791 and House Bill No. 10661 was deliberated in Plenary Session and was approved as Republic Act No. 9024.

Designation as regional center

The city was declared the regional center of the Calabarzon region by then President Gloria Arroyo by virtue of Executive Order No. 246, dated October 28, 2003.

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