General Mariano Alvarez

General Mariano Alvarez,Cavite
Municipality

Welcome arch on Governor's Drive

Flag
Seal
Nickname(s): Mushroom Capital of Cavite
Motto: Sulong Tungo Sa Tunay Na Pag-Unlad
(Forward to Real Development)

Map of Cavite showing the location of Gen. Mariano Alvarez
Gen. M. Alvarez

Location within the Philippines

Coordinates: 14°18′N 121°00′E / 14.300°N 121.000°E / 14.300; 121.000Coordinates: 14°18′N 121°00′E / 14.300°N 121.000°E / 14.300; 121.000
Country Philippines
Region CALABARZON (Region IV-A)
Provinces Cavite
Congr. districts 5th District of Cavite
Incorporated March 14, 1981
Barangays 27[1]
Government[2]
 • Mayor Walter Echevarria Jr. (LP)
 • Vice Mayor Maricel Torres (LP)
Area
 • Total 11.40 km2 (4.40 sq mi)
Population (2015)[3]
 • Total 155,143
 • Density 14,000/km2 (35,000/sq mi)
Time zone PST (UTC+8)
ZIP code 4117
Dialing code +63 (0)46
Website www.gmacavite.ph

The Municipality of General Mariano Alvarez (Filipino: Bayan ng Heneral Mariano Alvarez, or GMA) is an urban municipality in the province of Cavite, Philippines. According to the 2015 census, it has a population of 155,143 people[3] in an area of just 11.40 square kilometers, making it the second most densely populated city/municipality in Cavite after Rosario.

The municipality was named after General Mariano Álvarez, a native of the town of Noveleta, Cavite.

History

General Mariano Alvarez, the youngest town of the Province of Cavite, used to be a part of the Municipality of Carmona. This municipality was named after General Mariano Alvarez, one of the foremost sons of the province. He was a native of the town of Noveleta and he played a vital role during the Spanish Revolution. It had been called Carmona Resettlement Project and was under the direct management of the People’s Homesite and Housing Corporation (PHHC). This project started in March 1968 because of the need to clear the Quezon Memorial Park, Diliman, Quezon City of different shanties and other illegal constructions built on it. The PHHC prepared the basic development concepts with the National Planning Commission and the Department of Health comprising the Planning Group. The said group prescribed a minimum size of 12 x 12 or a total of 144 square meters for every family to be relocated in the area.

On July 3, 1968, the first seven families were admitted in the project. The Department of Social Welfare provided them with free three-day food rations for one month. During the same month, the Department of Health set up medical clinics with the Department of Education started holding classes on the Elementary and Second levels.

From 1970 to 1972, more families arrived in the area, including the flood victims and fire victims from the different parts of Quezon City, Makati and Manila. By the week of January 1973, the 7,840 allocated lots were already filled up.

Since San Jose and San Gabriel were converted into resettlement areas, the said localities have been provided by the government with different infrastructure projects such as school buildings, health centers, road and bridges. The government, through the PHHC, allotted paces for commercial and industrial centers as well as civic and government centers.

In 1974, through the initiative of all Barangay Chairpersons of then San Gabriel, Carmona, Cavite, as Association of Barangay Leaders was formally organized with Hon. Ricardo Agravio and Hon. Alfredo Diaz, as chairpersons alternately. The unity was tested by the outbreak of shortage of all essential commodities such as rice, sugar, edible oil and others. An agreement was reached and thru Barangay Secretary of Area J, Walter D. Echevarria Jr., official assignee to source funds to expedite the request for the supply of commodities and barangay stores with allocation of 150 cavans of rice.

The First Cavite Electric Cooperative (FCEC) provided electricity while Waterworks System was installed through the funding which came from the USAID.

Due to the popular clamor of the residents of the aforementioned resettlement areas towards the conversion of their locality into an independent municipality, the ten (10) Barangay Council of the communities of the then San Gabriel and San Jose, submitted resolution expressing their desire to the Sangguniang Bayan of Carmona which in turn favorably endorses the idea through Resolutions No. 56-S-1978.

The town of General Mariano Alvarez is the brainchild of Assemblywoman Helena T. Benitez of the then First District of Cavite and Jose A. Roño, Minister of Local Government and concurrent Majority Floor Leader of Batasang Pambansa. These two distinguished lawmakers co-authored the Batasan bill seeking to create the new town. Miss Benitez was also aided by another Assemblyman from the second District of Cavite in the person of Jorge A. Nuñez in alternately sponsoring the Bill and ably handling its passage through the different committee hearing and assembly sessions.

The Municipality of General Mariano Alvarez came into existence upon the ratification by the majority votes cast in a plebiscite at Carmona and its duly constituted barangays within a period of 180 days after the approval of Batas Pambansa 76 and Parliamentary Bill No. 631 after which the President of the Philippines appointed the first set of Local Officials for the said town.

Upon the effectivity of the specified legal acts converting Barangays San Jose and San Gabriel into the Municipality of General Mariano Alvarez, its proportional share in the obligation of funds, assets and other properties of Carmona was transferred to the newly created municipality upon the recommendation of the Commission of Audit, which was approved on June 30, 1980.

The inauguration and oath-taking ceremonies of the newly appointed officials of the Municipality of General Mariano Alvarez took place on March 14, 1981 at the Carmona Relocation Center High School, a signal that which it was also granted political autonomy. Several elected members of the Sangguniang Bayan of Carmona who are residents of the area were appointed to head the newly created municipality.

The new town was composed of the Resettlement areas of Barangays San Jose, San Gabriel and a portion of Cabilang Baybay. Barangay San Jose consist of areas A and B while Barangay San Gabriel consist of Areas C, D, E, F, H, I, J, and K.

On June 22, 1985, the Local Officials through legislative and administrative authorities created 27 duly constituted Barangays out of the former 10 Barangays comprising the resettlement areas.

Today, the Municipality of General Mariano Alvarez, has its seat of government located at Poblacion I, allocated and identified by the National Housing Authority.

In 2006, the municipality celebrated its 25th anniversary with a line-up of activities participated in by the municipality’s residents. The most prominent of which is the Mr. and Miss GMA (Gen. Mariano Alvarez is better known within the province of Cavite with its acronym), a beauty pageant annually held. Each of the 27 barangays in the town send a male and a female candidate for the pageant. Until 2005, the pageant was exclusive to the feminine side. It was made more special with the participation of the men in time for the silver anniversary of the founding of the municipality.

Gen. Mariano Alvarez also takes pride in being known as the “Mushroom Capital of Cavite” because of the mushroom culture facilities in the town. Mushrooms have become the town’s main product in line with the “One Town, One Product” program of the Philippine national government. The municipal officials saw the potential of native mushrooms as the town’s product because the town lacks in arable land. Today, mushrooms do not only contribute to the generation of income for the municipality, but they also become a source of livelihood for the town’s residents. As a tribute to this agricultural product, GMA has recently been celebrating the Kabuteño Festival as part of its annual foundation anniversary.

As envisioned by the National Government, General Mariano Alvarez, a former relocation area for the squatters of the Metropolitan Manila, will provide its residents with a more blissful life geared towards the full development and upliftment of the relocation area itself.

Today, as a developed community through the untiring effort of the Municipal Officials, General Mariano Alvarez is classified as a first class municipality. Its new municipal logo was created by Dr. Elias A. Alicaya, Jr, a resident of GMA, in 2006.

Geography

The Municipality of General Mariano Alvarez (GMA) is geographically located at coordinates approximately 120°59’15’ longitude and 14°18’30’ latitude. It is at the north-eastern boundaries of Cavite Province with Laguna Province. It is bounded on the north by the Municipality of San Pedro, Laguna on the east by the Municipality of Carmona, on the west by the City of Dasmariñas and on the south by the Municipality of Silang. General Mariano Alvarez is approximately forty two (42) kilometers south of the City of Manila, the premier city of the country and seventeen (20) kilometers east of Trece Martires City, the capital of the province. It is also approximate to the National Capital Region (NCR) of Metro Manila, the primate region of the country. The municipality converges with Metro Manila, through its southern gateway of San Pedro City to Alabang, Muntinlupa City. It is about 40 to 50 kilometers away from said convergence points. The Aguinaldo Highway, on the west and Governor's Drive on the south, which connects the two major roads. It can also accessed through the Molino-Paliparan road, which cut across the inner eastern portion of Cavite on a north-south direction running parallel to the South Luzon Expressway and Aguinaldo Highway and joins Governor's Drive on the south end. Modes of transportation are land vehicles.

Land area

General Mariano Alvarez has a total land area of 938.0137 hectares more or less as per “Batasang Pambansa Bilang 76” dated June 13, 1980, which created the municipality. These areas are currently occupied by 27 barangays of which five are considered Poblacion barangays and 22 others are regular barangays.

Topography

The municipality has elongated shape with a north, north-eastern orientation. It has a total length of about 7,040 meters and a width of about 780 meters at its smallest and 1,720 meters at its widest. The terrain is relatively flat plain from the south starting at the Governor's Drive running north covering about one third of the municipality’s length at Poblacion 5. From this point the terrain gradually begin to gently slope in one direction in the middle portion of the municipality, undulating and rolling to more than one direction towards the north-eastern barangay of Epifanio Malia, portion of Francisco de Castro, Francisco Reyes and San Jose.

Inland water bodies serve as natural boundaries with neighboring municipalities and drain its surface waters towards Manila Bay and Laguna Bay. These are Embarcadero River on the western boundaries with Dasmarinas and San Gabriel River on the eastern boundaries with Carmona. A major tributary, of San Gabriel River traverse the inner areas of the municipality from Francisco de Castro and Southwoods to Jacinto Lumbreras. The same tributary branches out at Inocencio Salud to serve as boundaries between the barangay of Col. J.P Elises andAldiano Olaes, on the eastern side. Small streams crisscross the landscape forming natural drainage where waste drains from Manila Bay and Laguna de Bay. These water bodies run and form deep gullies which gave the land a mass ridge-like formation. Considering the height and mass of the water bodies, the ridge-like formation are highly elevated. Thus, the terrain as described above.

Man-made physical changes, includes the presence of the Congressional Road which stretcher on full length of the municipality from the Governor's Drive or the national highway in the south to Francisco de Castro on the north. It runs parallel to the water bodies mentioned above on the eastern side of the municipality. Structures such as houses, schools, commercial establishments, institutional buildings and industrial firms are located among this road, on gully sides of water bodies and the top flat plain areas of the ridge. Open grasslands and agricultural areas can be found on the western near central portion of the municipality.

Slope

The slope of the municipality ranges from 0-3% to 3-8% broad to level nearly level are classified under 0-3% slope. These are generally the flat plain level lands on the southern portion from the Governor's Drive extending inwards covering all Poblacion barangays, Gavino Maderan, Jacinto Lumbreras, Ramon Cruz, San Gabriel and Severino delas Alas, 3-5% slope are gently sloping areas with land sloping in one general direction. This areas compress the central portion of the municipality from Barangay Kapitan Kua, Pantaleon Granados and Marcelino Mimeje to Aldiano Olaes, Col. Jose P. Elises and portion of Foerillo Calimag, Macario Dacon and Benjamin Tirona. These also include Inocencio Salud and Bernardo Pulido.

Areas on the north and north-eastern side have slope of 5-8%. These are gently undulating and rolling lands sloping in more than one general direction. Portion of Baranay Feorillo Calimag, Macario Dacon and Benjamin Tirona and barangay of Francisco de Castro, Francisco Reyes, Epifanio Malia, Tiniente Tiago, Nicolasa Virata, Gregoria de Jesus and San Jose.

Barangays

Gen. Mariano Alvarez was divided into 10 barangays (more appropriately, areas) that were parts of the Carmona Resettlement Project. It comprised the resettlement areas in Barangays San Jose, and San Gabriel, and a portion of Cabilang Baybay, a barangay of the municipality of Carmona. San Jose consists of Areas A and B, while San Gabriel is composed of Areas C, D, E, F, G, H, I, J, and K.

On March 25, 1985, by virtue of legislative and administrative acts, a referendum was made to redivide the municipality into the current 27 barangays. They were named after the revolutionary leaders of the province of Cavite - including those related to the great general to whom the municipality was named after - and the barangay captains and other prominent personalities who led the former 10 barangays. The first appointed officials of the barangays were sworn into office en masse on June 27, 1985.

Five of the current barangays are classified as poblacion barangays, or those that are within the municipality's central area. The 22 others are ordinary barangays.

The 27 barangays are as follows:[4]

  • Aldiano Olaes
  • Barangay 1 Poblacion (Area I)
  • Barangay 2 Poblacion
  • Barangay 3 Poblacion
  • Barangay 4 Poblacion
  • Barangay 5 Poblacion
  • Benjamin Tirona (Area D)
  • Bernardo Pulido (Area H)
  • Epifanio Malia
  • Francisco De Castro
  • Francisco Reyes (San Jose)
  • Fiorello Calimag (Area C)
  • Gavino Maderan (Area J)
  • Gregoria De Jesus (San Jose)
  • Inocencio Salud (Area F)
  • Jacinto Lumbreras (Area J)
  • Kapitan Kua (Area F)
  • Koronel Jose P. Elises (Area E)
  • Macario Dacon (Area D)
  • Marcelino Memije (Area H)
  • Nicolasa Virata (San Jose)
  • Pantaleon Granados (Area G)
  • Ramon Cruz (Area J)
  • San Gabriel (Area K)
  • San Jose (San Jose)
  • Severino De Las Alas (Area J)
  • Tiniente Tiago (San Jose)

Demographics

Population census of Gen. Mariano Alvarez
YearPop.±% p.a.
1990 65,977—    
1995 86,824+5.28%
2000 112,446+5.70%
2007 136,613+2.72%
2010 138,540+0.51%
2015 155,143+2.18%
Source: National Statistics Office[3]

Religion

The majority of the people in General Mariano Alvarez, Cavite are Roman Catholics. Some are Iglesia ni Cristo, Baptist, Adventist, Jehovah's Witness, LDS Churches, Protestant/Christian churches, Islam, born again Christian fellowships (Jesus Is Lord, Victory, Word for the World, Community Harvest, Community of Praise, Jesus Christ Spreading the Good News, Lord's Vineyard Covenant Communit, etc.) and Members Church of God International (Ang Dating Daan) are also established in four Baranggay's.

Religion Percent ( % )
Roman Catholic 90.81%
Protestant 1.23%
Members Church of God International 3.5%
Aglipay 0.11%
Islam 0.11%
Iglesia ni Cristo 99.9%
Others (specified) 2.84%
None 0.5

Municipal Mayors

Education

Colleges and universities

The town's only university, the UPHS-Cavite. Its main entrance is located along Governor's Drive.

Public elementary and high schools

Private elementary and high schools

Hospitals and clinics

References

  1. ↑ Philippine Standard Geographic Code listing for Imus - National Statistical Coordination Board
  2. ↑ "Official City/Municipal 2013 Election Results". Intramuros, Manila, Philippines: Commission on Elections (COMELEC). 11 September 2013. Retrieved 24 October 2013.
  3. 1 2 3 https://psa.gov.ph/content/highlights-philippine-population-2015-census-population. Missing or empty |title= (help)
  4. ↑ "Municipality: GEN. MARIANO ALVAREZ". Philippine Statistics Authority (National Statistical Coordination Board). Retrieved May 24, 2016.
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