R.A. 9018: The Birth of the City

After the very successful celebration of the 100^th Anniversary of the historic “Cry of Candon” in 1998, former Deputy Speaker Eric D. Singson filed a bill in the 10^th Congress seeking to convert the Municipality of Candon into a component city of Ilocos Sur.

At that time, the province of Ilocos Sur still had no city. But Candon had already showed great potentials in leading the locality with its economic progress and social development as the foremost trading center in the 2^nd district of Ilocos Sur, Being then a 2^nd Class Municipality with an average income of Php. 42 Million, Candon’s conversion into a city would mean more progress and development for the Candonians and for the Province of Ilocos Sur as well. So a vigorous campaign was launched in Upper and Lower Houses of the Congress. Unfortunately, the aspiration of the people for their beloved Candon to become the first city of Ilocos Sur was upset by some opposition sectors of Candon and of some influential leaders from Vigan, the provincial capital.

But the unity and initiative of the majority surpassed those oppositions. In the 11^th Congress, the then Congresswoman Grace G. Singson re-filed the Candon Cityhood Bill and eventually championed it and passed into law , thus the birth of the City Charter R.A. 9018. Coincidentally, this bill was deliberated upon at about the same time as a similar bill was filed for the conversion of Vigan into a component city.

In a plebiscite conducted on March 18, 2001, R.A 9018 was ratified overwhelmingly by the people of Candon; only a month after Vigan became a city in February 2001. On May 5, 2001, R.A. 9018 was signed by former President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo and former House Speaker Sonny Belmonte at the Malacañang Palace.

Today, the City of Candon is proud to maintain a steady course of progress and development as the recognized leader of trade and commerce in the 2^nd District of Ilocos Sur. The City Government thru the cooperation of  its well-educated, highly-competitive and hardworking citizenry supported under the leadership of its efficient and honorable city officials has able to earn its titles such as the “Premier City in Southern Ilocos”, the uncontested “Tobacco Capital of the Philippines”, and the “Producer of the largest CALAMAY (glutinous rice cake) in the world”.

Historical Timeline

Significant Events in the History of Candon City

12th century — Malay settlers established their fishing and hunting communities ruled by tribal elders who held court under the legendary and gigantic “Kandong” tree, where Candon City derived its name.

16th century— Spaniards from the town of Vigan expanded their territories to the south including this town. When they asked the natives the name of the place, the locals could not understand their foreign language, and have thought they were asking the name of the tree instead; so the natives without too much fuss, told the name of the big tree, “Kandong.”

Late 16th to 19th century—Candon was established as a town following the fall of the great “Kandong” tree whose lumber was used to construct the Church Bell Tower as a way to convert the natives into Christianity.

March 25, 1898—Don Isabelo Abaya, the local town hero, banded with a handful of Candonians to readied to fight the Spaniards at dawn in what we call now as the “Ikkis ti Candon” (Cry of Candon). His group successfully entered the Municipal Cazadores and demanded the surrender of the Spanish army, eventually declaring Candon as an independent republic, a full three months before the Philippine national uprising in Biak na Bato.

May 3, 1900—Don Isabelo Abaya continued his fight as Comandante against the Americans after the Spaniards were vanquished by General Manuel Tinio’s brigade. The local hero later died as a prisoner of war in the hands of the Americans.

January 19, 1942—Candonino Gaerlan ambushed several truckloads of Japanese soldiers at Gabaldon signaling another triumphant uprising by a local against the heavily armed foreign invaders.

March 1998—Candonians celebrated the Centennial of Don Isabelo Abaya’s “Ikkis Ti Candon” (Cry of Candon) topped by Candon’s bid to become a component City.

March 28, 2001—Plebiscite results confirmed Republic Act 9018, the law that was passed in both Houses of Congress converting the town of Candon as the new component City of the Province of Ilocos Sur.

December 1-3, 2005— Candon City commemorated the famous 1892 Feria de Exposicion which showcased the rich culture, heritage, and status of the city as a prominent trade and commerce center in Northern Luzon then and now.

October 15, 2010— President Benigno C. Aquino III, together with the Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry awarded Candon City as the 2010 Most Business Friendly LGU for City Level-II Category.

March 28, 2011— Candonians will celebrate their 10th-year Cityhood foundation. This decade commemorates the city’s struggles amidst the challenges it has surpassed for the previous years and its continuous aim for the prosperity, peace and happiness of Candonians.