The Negros Occidental provincial government is set to expropriate 125 hectares owned by the defunct Insular Lumber Co. in Barangay Bacuyangan, Hinobaan, for conversion into an economic zone, Jose. Ma. Valencia, chief of staff of Gov. Alfredo Marañon Jr. said yesterday
ILCO reportedly turned over the property to the Bureau of Internal Revenue, to which it owed unpaid taxes, he said.
The firm also has a little over P1 million in unpaid real property taxes to the provincial government, Valencia said.
The provincial government will file expropriation proceedings before the court so the matter can be settled once and for all, he said.
There are numerous investors wanting to put up processing plants in Negros Occidental so the provincial government wants to be ready with economic zones and the necessary infrastructure, he said.
The governor’s instruction is to fast-track the expropriation of the Hinobaan property, Valencia said
The ILCO property has the Santa Ana Port and a small airstrip that would be ideal for an economic zone, he pointed out.
The provincial government will work on setting up the necessary infrastructure such as roads, power, water supply, communication facilities to draw locators to the economic zone, Valencia added.*CPG
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