Muntinlupa marks 28th cityhood 

On March 1, Muntinlupa will be celebrating its 28th year of cityhood, with one eye to a “smart future” but looking back at the harsh lessons and realities wrought by the three year-old pandemic. 

This is the message that Mayor Ruffy Biazon, who also marks his eighth month in office as the City’s chief executive, wants to share to his fellow Muntinlupeños in his latest State of the City Address even as Muntinlupa marks another milestone in its almost three-decade existence as a first-class city.

“The pandemic has been a true test of our strength, of our faith. It has been—and for some, still is—a difficult time, but the good news is that we are steadily bouncing back. We are steadily recovering from the effects of the crisis caused by the pandemic,” he said.

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While Biazon believes that City has turned a page, there is still much to build on in terms of recovering from the pandemic.  Currently, Muntinlupa has achieved 136% vaccination rate among its eligible target population, translating to 538,614 individuals, with 80% having received booster shots. It has also significantly upgraded its Ospital ng Muntinlupa (OsMun), with a new annex building increasing the hospital’s bed capacity to 250, the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) up to 16 beds, plus five new operating room theatres, and additional mechanical ventilator, anesthesia, and ultrasound machines.

Recovering the lost years of the pandemic has also required the combined efforts of educators, parents, the City Government, and various other sectors to safely bring back to school almost 89,000 Muntinlupeño students. The city has also recognized a significant literacy gap brought about by the time away from school and has sought to address this with the “Every Muntinlupeño a Reader” agenda, which seeks to develop basic literacy skills like reading, listening, and comprehension especially among early readers. 

But the City’s recovery has been nothing short of spectacular thus far.  Recently the City’s malnutrition rate was pegged at 0.36%, the lowest since the year 2018, thanks to an aggressive nutrition program covering 95% or 42,220 target children aged 0-59 months old. Muntinlupa has also exceeded expectations of its post-pandemic rebound, posting P6.033 billion in total revenues, way more than the income target for 2022, on top of 101.09% collection efficiency. 

In addition, the City had 12,232 registered businesses this January 2023, up by 59% from 7,651 registered businesses in the same period last year. These economic indicators have placed Muntinlupa among the top five most competitive economies in the Philippines, and this is validated by the City receiving the 2022 Seal of Good Local Governance.

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Indeed, Biazon believes the future of Muntinlupa as a smart city is achievable thanks to the collective Muntinlupeño spirit. “Our cityhood journey, and now our road to pandemic recovery, underscores the importance of working together, and shows what we can do when we are focused towards a more liveable and more responsive city for Muntinlupeños,” he said.