This writer had the pleasure of visiting the crown jewel that is Northern Mindanao last week, particularly Cagayan de Oro City and Bukidnon. The last time I was there was six months ago when I wrote a piece on how Cagayan de Oro has grown after the six-year presidency of Rodrigo Roa Duterte.
This time around, the progress is more pronounced as I was able to visit other provinces. Incidentally, former President Duterte was also in Cagayan de Oro at the time but, unfortunately, I was not able to bump into him.
It was on the occasion of the 63rd anniversary of Stronghold Insurance held at their 9-story building in the heart of Cagayan de Oro. The event was held on the roof deck of their impressive structure, which in the future shall house a hotel on the 3rd to 9th floors. The building is the regional office of Stronghold Insurance for Mindanao.
The event was attended by the top agents and clients of the firm. A golf invitational was held at Pueblo de Oro Golf Club, where players from the club and Manila competed.
The growth of an insurance business is reflected in the development of the region. With the increase in infrastructure development and businesses in the area, the demand for insurance protection rises as well.
From my previous visit in August 2022, Cagayan de Oro appears to have progressed rapidly with the opening of new roads and highways, the near completion of a coastal highway, and the economic activity in areas away from downtown.
Ten years ago, typhoon “Sendong” hit Cagayan de Oro and caused massive flooding downtown. This caused the city to move its people up to the hilly portions of the city and develop the area called “Uptown,” where malls, restaurants, and subdivisions are situated and thriving.
Back in downtown, construction continues to raise the roads to avoid future flooding. This is crucial since the single strip downtown where the major malls and hotels are located experiences heavy traffic during rush hour.
I was also able to visit the Del Monte Golf Club in Bukidnon. It reminded me of the old military bases in Baguio with their pine trees and old housing structures. The steak in the clubhouse is to die for, with its thickness and sweet taste which is attributed to the cows feasting on pineapples every day. The golf course, designed by Americans back in the day, is long and challenging, making it definitely worth the visit.
We can attribute the progress to having a president from Mindanao, albeit in the southern part of it in Davao. If one visits Davao City, it would be nearly unrecognizable from a decade ago with the amount of development realized in the province of Davao. The progress continues with the slated opening of Discovery Samal and the reopening of Marco Polo Davao. We are still waiting for the Mindanao Railway, a project that has yet to commence.
Some people are worried that Mindanao might be forgotten since the president now is from Northern Luzon, but we shouldn’t forget that the vice president and the Senate president are both from Mindanao. From the looks of it, economic activities are robust, businesses continue to thrive in Mindanao, and these show no signs of slowing down.
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