Former Parañaque City Councilor Benjo Bernabe files certificate of candidacy (COC) to run for Vice Mayor

Recently in the city of Parañaque, former City Councilor Benjo Bernabe officially filed his certificate of candidacy (COC) to run for the office of Vice Mayor of Parañaque in the May 2025 local elections.

For the newcomers reading this, Benjo Bernabe is the son of former Parañaque City Mayor Florencio “Jun” Bernabe. The young Bernabe served as City Councilor from 2010 to 2013, and he ran for Mayor in the 2013 local election but ended up short.

Benjo Bernabe filed his COC in the presence of Commission on Elections (COMELEC) – Parañaque officials at City Hall. With him were his father, Congressman Brian Yamsuan (note: a candidate for the District 2 Congressional Seat of Parañaque) and Barangay BF Homes captain Jeremy Marquez to name a few.

Former City Councilor Benjo Bernabe shows his certificate of candidacy (COC) confirming his run for the office of Vice Mayor of Parañaque in the May 2025 local elections. (photo source – Benjo Bernabe Official Facebook page)
Benjo Bernabe signing the form at City Hall. In the background were his father former Parañaque City Mayor Florencio “Jun” Bernabe, congressman Brian Yamsuan and Barangay BF Homes captain Jeremy Marquez (hidden, standing behind former Mayor Bernabe). (photo source – Benjo Bernabe Official Facebook page)

Benjo Bernabe has an official Facebook page where viewers can find updates about his campaign. To visit the FB page of the candidate, click https://www.facebook.com/BenjoBernabeOfficial

Let me end this post by asking you readers: What do you think about this recent development? If you are a resident of Parañaque, do you think Benjo Bernabe will make a good and effective Vice Mayor? Have you decided already to support Bernabe’s campaign for the office of Vice Mayor? Do you think that in the event Bernabe becomes the next Vice Mayor, do you think her can inspire change to improve the quality of the City Government’s services and also make the city more competitive with the other highly urbanized cities of the nation? How enthusiastic are you right now when it comes to voting in the next local elections in May 2025?

You may answer in the comments below. If you prefer to answer privately, you may do so by sending me a direct message online.

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Thank you for reading. If you find this article engaging, please click the like button below, share this article to others and also please consider making a donation to support my publishing. If you are looking for a copywriter to create content for your special project or business, check out my services and my portfolio. Feel free to contact me with a private message. Also please feel free to visit my Facebook page Author Carlo Carrasco and follow me on Twitter at  @HavenorFantasy as well as on Tumblr at https://carlocarrasco.tumblr.com/ and on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/authorcarlocarrasco

For more South Metro Manila community news and developments, come back here soon. Also say NO to fake news, NO to irresponsible journalism, NO to misinformation, NO to plagiarists, NO to reckless publishers and NO to sinister propaganda when it comes to news and developments. For South Metro Manila community developments, member engagement, commerce and other relevant updates, join the growing South Metro Manila Facebook group at https://www.facebook.com/groups/342183059992673

CMCI 2024: Parañaque falls down to 27th place among Highly Urbanized Cities on Competitiveness, finishes dead last on Government Efficiency

The latest results of the Cities and Municipalities Competitiveness Index (CMCI) for the year 2024 showed that the City of Parañaque fell down to 27th place among the 33 Highly Urbanized Cities (HUCs) in terms of Competitiveness when compared to last year’s results. Also for the 2nd straight year, Parañaque finished dead last at 33rd place in the category of Government Efficiency.

Parañaque City, which was the 24th Most Competitive HUC a year ago, scored 35.3478 points in total on the main category of Competitiveness among HUCs ranking 27th out of 33 HUCs overall.

The overall ranking of Parañaque City among the 33 highly urbanized cities (HUCs) nationwide for the 2024 CMCI.

Along the way, the city scored 7.9090 points on Government Efficiency for 33rd place, 6.5970 points on Innovation for 31st place, 11.1401 points on Resiliency for 30th place, 4.6574 points on Infrastructure for 23rd place and 5.0443 points on Economic Dynamism for 12th place.

To see the full results, complete rankings and other details of the CMCI 2024 research, click https://cmci.dti.gov.ph/rankings-data.php?unit=Highly%20Urbanized%20Cities

Let me end this post by asking you readers: What is your reaction to this recent development? If you are a resident of Parañaque City, do you think the City Government has been doing something wrong which resulted in a lower competitiveness ranking this year? Has your City Government been transparent with regards to rendering services to you?

You may answer in the comments below. If you prefer to answer privately, you may do so by sending me a direct message online.

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Thank you for reading. If you find this article engaging, please click the like button below, share this article to others and also please consider making a donation to support my publishing. If you are looking for a copywriter to create content for your special project or business, check out my services and my portfolio. Feel free to contact me with a private message. Also please feel free to visit my Facebook page Author Carlo Carrasco and follow me on Twitter at  @HavenorFantasy as well as on Tumblr at https://carlocarrasco.tumblr.com/ and on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/authorcarlocarrasco

For more South Metro Manila community news and developments, come back here soon. Also say NO to fake news, NO to irresponsible journalism, NO to misinformation, NO to plagiarists, NO to reckless publishers and NO to sinister propaganda when it comes to news and developments. For South Metro Manila community developments, member engagement, commerce and other relevant updates, join the growing South Metro Manila Facebook group at https://www.facebook.com/groups/342183059992673

CMCI 2024: Muntinlupa is the 4th Most Competitive Highly Urbanized City of the nation, 1st on Innovation

The latest results of the Cities and Municipalities Competitiveness Index (CMCI) for the year 2024 showed that the City of Muntinlupa is now the 4th Most Competitive Highly Urbanized City (HUC) of the nation as well as a very high finisher among other categories including 1st place on Innovation.

Muntinlupa City, which was the 5th Most Competitive last year, scored 53.5967 points in total on Competitiveness among HUCs ranking 4th out of 33 overall.

Along the way, the city scored 12.2489 points for 1st place on the category of Innovation, 15.2697 points on Resiliency for 2nd place, 10.1075 points on Infrastructure for 3rd place, 11.9714 points on Government Efficiency for 6th place, and 3.9992 points on Economic Dynamism for 17th place. On the category of the Most Improved Rankings for 2024 among HUCs, Muntinlupa finished 7th place.

In addition, the City of Muntinlupa won awards during the Creative Cities and Municipalities Congress held on August 23, 2024, according to a Manila Bulletin news report. The awards are related to the CMCI 2024 research and results.

To see the full results, complete rankings and other details of the CMCI 2024 research, click https://cmci.dti.gov.ph/rankings-data.php?unit=Highly%20Urbanized%20Cities

Let me end this post by asking you readers: What is your reaction to this recent development? If you are a resident of Muntinlupa City, are you delighted to see your city being very competitive with other HUCs of the nation? Do you think Muntinlupa City has what it takes to become the most competitive city of all in next year’s CMCI?

You may answer in the comments below. If you prefer to answer privately, you may do so by sending me a direct message online.

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Thank you for reading. If you find this article engaging, please click the like button below, share this article to others and also please consider making a donation to support my publishing. If you are looking for a copywriter to create content for your special project or business, check out my services and my portfolio. Feel free to contact me with a private message. Also please feel free to visit my Facebook page Author Carlo Carrasco and follow me on Twitter at  @HavenorFantasy as well as on Tumblr at https://carlocarrasco.tumblr.com/ and on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/authorcarlocarrasco

For more South Metro Manila community news and developments, come back here soon. Also say NO to fake news, NO to irresponsible journalism, NO to misinformation, NO to plagiarists, NO to reckless publishers and NO to sinister propaganda when it comes to news and developments. For South Metro Manila community developments, member engagement, commerce and other relevant updates, join the growing South Metro Manila Facebook group at https://www.facebook.com/groups/342183059992673

Parañaque City finishes as the 24th Most Competitive Highly Urbanized City, dead last on Government Efficiency and Innovation (CMCI 2023)

The official results of the Cities and Municipalities Competitive Index (CMCI) for 2023 have been published and it shows Parañaque City did worse this time finishing as 24th Most Competitive Highly Urbanized City (HUC) of the nation and this includes finishing dead last (33rd place) among the HUCs in the categories of Innovation and Government Efficiency.

To put things in perspective, the HUCs (which covers very dense cities in the National Capital Region and the provinces) are determined by means of Competitiveness (the main category) as well as other related categories such as Economic Dynamism, Government Efficiency, Infrastructure, Resiliency and Innovation.

The 2023 CMCI showed that Parañaque City scored 36.301 for 24th place in Competitiveness (versus 19th place in 2022). The city’s highlight is finishing 11th place on Economic Dynamism with a score of 5.3264, 16th place on Infrastructure with 5.2753, and 26th place on Resiliency with 11.4956.

What is most notable is that Parañaque finished dead last among the 33 HUCs on the categories of Government Efficiency and Innovation with scores of 8.2859 and 5.9169 respectively.

How and why did Parañaque end up as the worst HUC on Government Efficiency and Innovation needs to be explained in detail by the local officials. I know for a fact that Parañaque has been a hot spot for crime but that alone does not explain the CMCI’s 2023 findings. I can only wonder how efficient the City Government of Parañaque has been over the past 24 months as well since the day Mayor Eric Olivarez took office.  

Let me end this piece by asking you readers: What do you think about this recent development? If you are a resident of Parañaque and had been doing transactions with the City Government, did you notice anything wrong? Has the City Government been performing sluggishly in recent times? Did transparency at the City Government weaken? What do you think should the City Government do with regards to innovation in relation to public service?

You may answer in the comments below. If you prefer to answer privately, you may do so by sending me a direct message online.

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Thank you for reading. If you find this article engaging, please click the like button below, share this article to others and also please consider making a donation to support my publishing. If you are looking for a copywriter to create content for your special project or business, check out my services and my portfolio. Feel free to contact me with a private message. Also please feel free to visit my Facebook page Author Carlo Carrasco and follow me on Twitter at  @HavenorFantasy as well as on Tumblr at https://carlocarrasco.tumblr.com/ and on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/authorcarlocarrasco

For more South Metro Manila community news and developments, come back here soon. Also say NO to fake news, NO to irresponsible journalism, NO to misinformation, NO to plagiarists, NO to reckless publishers and NO to sinister propaganda when it comes to news and developments. For South Metro Manila community developments, member engagements, commerce and other relevant updates, join the growing South Metro Manila Facebook group at https://www.facebook.com/groups/342183059992673

Muntinlupa City declared 5th Most Competitive Highly Urbanized City of the nation (CMCI 2023)

The City of Muntinlupa has officially been declared as the 5th Most Competitive Highly Urbanized City of the nation based on the 2023 Cities and Municipalities Competitiveness Index (CMCI) results which also showed strong finishes by the said city on other categories, according to a Manila Bulletin news report.

To put things in perspective, posted below is an excerpt from the Manila Bulletin news report. Some parts in boldface…

For a closer look at the CMCI results, click https://cmci.dti.gov.ph/rankings-data.php?unit=Highly%20Urbanized%20Cities

Let me end this piece by asking you readers: What is your reaction to this recent development? If you are a resident of Muntinlupa City, what is your reaction to what the city achieved in the latest CMCI rankings? Do you believe that Muntinlupa is a blossoming and highly competitive city among all highly urbanized cities of the nation?

You may answer in the comments below. If you prefer to answer privately, you may do so by sending me a direct message online.

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Thank you for reading. If you find this article engaging, please click the like button below, share this article to others and also please consider making a donation to support my publishing. If you are looking for a copywriter to create content for your special project or business, check out my services and my portfolio. Feel free to contact me with a private message. Also please feel free to visit my Facebook page Author Carlo Carrasco and follow me on Twitter at  @HavenorFantasy as well as on Tumblr at https://carlocarrasco.tumblr.com/ and on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/authorcarlocarrasco

For more South Metro Manila community news and developments, come back here soon. Also say NO to fake news, NO to irresponsible journalism, NO to misinformation, NO to plagiarists, NO to reckless publishers and NO to sinister propaganda when it comes to news and developments. For South Metro Manila community developments, member engagements, commerce and other relevant updates, join the growing South Metro Manila Facebook group at https://www.facebook.com/groups/342183059992673

Parañaque City ranks only 19th among Highly Urbanized Cities of the nation in terms of Competitiveness according to CMCI 2022 results

Have you heard of the words Parañaque Renaissance? Whether it is a political slogan or the description of the supposed improvements of the city, or even the name of some food or beverage product, Parañaque Renaissance was designed to make people believe that the City of Parañaque is great and prospering.

Recently, the results of the Cities and Municipalities Competitiveness Index 2022 Rankings (CMCI 2022) were published and already there were local government units (LGUs) and provincial governments that highlighted what they achieved.

The City of Muntinlupa finished #1 among all Highly Urbanized Cities (HUCs) in the category of Resiliency while also ranking 5th overall on Competitiveness, 4th on Infrastructure and 10th on Innovation. Quezon City, which is the Most Competitive among all HUCs, finished with on Innovation and on Infrastructure, Resiliency, Government Efficiency and Economic Dynamism. Pasay City emerged as on Economic Dynamism while finished 3rd overall on Competitiveness.

Parañaque, the city that has BF Homes and Better Living among its many residential communities within its borders, ended up with 19th place in the category of Competitiveness among HUCs. To be clear, there are 33 HUCs all in all. Parañaque finished 10th place on Economic Dynamism, 13th place on Infrastructure, 16th place on Resiliency, 23rd place on Government Efficiency and 29th place on Innovation. The results can viewed at https://cmci.dti.gov.ph/rankings-data.php?unit=Highly%20Urbanized%20Cities

Let me end this piece by asking you readers: If you are a Parañaque City resident, what can you say about your city’s performance in the newest CMCI study? Do you think your city became less competitive due to criminal activities (click here, here, here, here, here, here and here) or perhaps due to the COVID-19 pandemic? Do you think that your new city government officials plan to do something to make the city more competitive with other highly urbanized cities of the nation? Based on the latest CMCI results, do you consider Parañaque a great city at all?

You may answer in the comments below. If you prefer to answer privately, you may do so by sending me a direct message online.

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Thank you for reading. If you find this article engaging, please click the like button below, share this article to others and also please consider making a donation to support my publishing. If you are looking for a copywriter to create content for your special project or business, check out my services and my portfolio. Feel free to contact me with a private message. Also please feel free to visit my Facebook page Author Carlo Carrasco and follow me on Twitter at  @HavenorFantasy as well as on Tumblr at https://carlocarrasco.tumblr.com/ and on Instagram athttps://www.instagram.com/authorcarlocarrasco

For more South Metro Manila community news and developments, come back here soon. Also say NO to fake news, NO to irresponsible journalism, NO to misinformation, NO to plagiarists, NO to reckless publishers and NO to sinister propaganda when it comes to news and developments. For South Metro Manila community developments, member engagements, commerce and other relevant updates, join the growing South Metro Manila Facebook group at https://www.facebook.com/groups/342183059992673

Muntinlupa City declared the Most Resilient Highly Urbanized City of the Nation (2022 CMCI)

The City of Muntinlupa achieved another tremendous honor that local residents can be delighted with as it was declared Number One among all Highly Urbanized Cities of the Nation on the category of Resiliency as based on the results of the 2022 Cities and Municipalities Competitiveness Index (CMCI), according to a Manila Bulletin news report. Muntinlupa also made it in other categories among highly urbanized cities.

To put things in perspective, posted below is the excerpt from the Manila Bulletin news report. Some parts in boldface…

Muntinlupa was recognized as No. 1 in resiliency and No. 5 overall most competitive among all highly urbanized cities in the country under the 2022 Cities and Municipalities Competitiveness Index (CMCI).

The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) awarded outstanding local government units (LGUs) during the 10th Cities and Municipalities Competitiveness Summit held at the Philippine International Convention Center (PICC) on Oct. 20.

According to the CMCI website, “local competitiveness is how a city or municipality knows its resources and how it uses these to improve its standard of living.”

LGUs are ranked based on CMCI’s five pillars: economic dynamism, government efficiency, infrastructure, resilience and innovation.

This is the third straight year that Muntinlupa topped the resiliency pillar among highly urbanized cities in the country.

Resiliency is the capacity of a locality to facilitate businesses and industries to create jobs, raise productivity, and increase the incomes of citizens over time despite of the shocks and stresses it encounters,” according to the CMCI.

It added, “This implies that the role of local governments is critical in ensuring a competitive environment to make businesses sustain their profits, create jobs, and increase the productivity of its people. In order for localities to be able to do this, it must be resilient in its infrastructure, governance, social and environmental systems.”

The resiliency pillar is based on annual disaster drill, budget for disaster risk reduction and management plan, disaster risk reduction plan, emergency infrastructure, employed population, early warning system, local risk assessments, land use plan, sanitary system and utilities.

In addition, Muntinlupa is No. 4 in infrastructure and 10 in innovation among highly urbanized cities in the country.

The above report ended stating that City Administrator Allan Cachuela and Local Economic and Investment Promotion Office head Gary Llama represented Mayor Ruffy Biazon at the ceremony.

Let me end this piece by asking you readers: If you are a Muntinlupa City resident, what is your reaction to this development? Are you happy with what the city achieved in terms of being competitive with the many other highly urbanized cities?

You may answer in the comments below. If you prefer to answer privately, you may do so by sending me a direct message online.

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Thank you for reading. If you find this article engaging, please click the like button below, share this article to others and also please consider making a donation to support my publishing. If you are looking for a copywriter to create content for your special project or business, check out my services and my portfolio. Feel free to contact me with a private message. Also please feel free to visit my Facebook page Author Carlo Carrasco and follow me on Twitter at  @HavenorFantasy as well as on Tumblr at https://carlocarrasco.tumblr.com/ and on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/authorcarlocarrasco

For more South Metro Manila community news and developments, come back here soon. Also say NO to fake news, NO to irresponsible journalism, NO to misinformation, NO to plagiarists, NO to reckless publishers and NO to sinister propaganda when it comes to news and developments. For South Metro Manila community developments, member engagements, commerce and other relevant updates, join the growing South Metro Manila Facebook group at https://www.facebook.com/groups/342183059992673

Muntinlupa City declared the Most Resilient among all Highly Urbanized Cities

The progressive City of Muntinlupa continued to make waves around the nation as the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) formally recognized it for achieving 1st place in the category of resiliency among all the Highly Urbanized Cities (HUCs) of the nation based on the results of the 2021 Cities and Municipalities Competitiveness Index (CMCI), the Manila Bulletin reported. The plaque of recognition was received by the City Government.

To put things in perspective, posted below is the excerpt from the Manila Bulletin report. Some parts in boldface…

The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) awarded the Muntinlupa city government a plaque of recognition on Wednesday, June 29, for ranking No. 1 in resiliency among all highly-urbanized cities (HUCs) in the country under the 2021 Cities and Municipalities Competitiveness Index (CMCI).

According to the CMCI website, “local competitiveness is how a city or municipality knows its resources and how it uses these to improve its standard of living.

Outgoing Mayor and congressman-elect Jaime Fresnedi received the plaque of recognition from DTI Competitiveness Bureau Director Lilian Salonga.

Muntinlupa topped the resilience pillar of CMCI for two consecutive years. The resiliency pillar ranking is based on annual disaster drill, budget for disaster risk reduction and management plan, disaster risk reduction plan, emergency infrastructure, employed population, early warning system, local risk assessments, land use plan, sanitary system and utilities.

Also joining the program were City Administrator Allan Cachuela, Business Permits and Licensing Office executives led by Eli Hilapo, City Planning and Development Office acting chief Alvin Veron, International Relations Officer James Arriola, National Quality and Competitiveness Division chief Ma. Sheryl Santos, and DTI-NCRO Area 2 Division Chief Rowena D.B. San Jose.

The DTI, through the National Competitiveness Council, conducts the annual CMCI, which ranks local government units in the country based on four pillars: economic dynamism, government efficiency, infrastructure, and resiliency.

In the 2021 rankings for highly-urbanized cities in the country, defined as LGUs with at least 200,000 population and latest annual income of at least P50 million, Muntinlupa ranked first with a score of 20.68.

In the overall CMCI rankings for HUCs in the country, Muntinlupa placed fifth with a score of 48.

The above article ended stating that Muntinlupa ranked 5th in Infrastructure, 7th in Government Efficiency and 19th in Economic Dynamism based on the findings of the 2021 CMCI.

Let me end this piece by asking you readers: If you are a Muntinlupa City resident, what is your reaction to this development? Are you happy with what Muntinlupa City achieved according to the 2021 CMCI results?

You may answer in the comments below. If you prefer to answer privately, you may do so by sending me a direct message online.

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Thank you for reading. If you find this article engaging, please click the like button below and also please consider sharing this article to others. If you are looking for a copywriter to create content for your special project or business, check out my services and my portfolio. Feel free to contact me with a private message. Also please feel free to visit my Facebook page Author Carlo Carrasco and follow me on Twitter at  @HavenorFantasy as well as on Tumblr at https://carlocarrasco.tumblr.com/ and on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/authorcarlocarrasco/

For more South Metro Manila community news and developments, come back here soon. Also say NO to fake news, NO to irresponsible journalism, NO to misinformation, NO to plagiarists, NO to reckless publishers and NO to sinister propaganda when it comes to news and developments. For South Metro Manila community developments, member engagements, commerce and other relevant updates, join the growing South Metro Manila Facebook group at https://www.facebook.com/groups/342183059992673