A SMALL town in Mactan, Cebu, is planning to reclaim an island off its shores and convert it into an 18-hole golf course.

Cordova town Mayor Adelino Sitoy said the municipal government is processing the documents to cover the reclamation of 14-hectare Lava Island, located approximately 1 km off the shore of the mainland. The town is planning to add 46 hectares on the island to accommodate a 60-hectare, 18-hole golf course.

A kilometer-long bridge will be built to connect the golf course through the shallow reef separating it from the mainland.

“Mactan is the destination of thousands of tourists, yet there is no world-class golf resort on the island,” said Sitoy, adding that the local government is currently securing permits from the Philippine Reclamation Authority, the Department of Environment and Natural Resources and the Department of Tourism.

“We will finish with all the permits in one month. Civil works could start within the year,” Sitoy told the Business Mirror.

“This will be a municipal government project to benefit the people of Cordova.”

Sitoy clarified the reclamation will not affect the people’s livelihood, since marine sanctuaries around the town will be protected.

The municipal government has also begun talks with a Korean-Filipino group which has committed to submit an unsolicited proposal to fund the reclamation under a build-operate-transfer scheme.

Sitoy said the private company is proposing to build the golf course and a marina, operate it for 25 years and return the property to the town after the contract expires.

“We will build something out of nothing,” Sitoy said, adding that the company has initially promised to give the town P1 million a year and employ hundreds of local residents.

Located at the far end of Mactan Island, Cordova is popular for its rich marine sanctuaries in Hilutungan Channel and several exclusive island resorts. Besides tourism, the town’s population is mostly reliant on fishing.

DEBT activists have urged donor countries and agencies to stop providing the Arroyo administration with loans and aid to prevent government corruption through a rally at the ongoing Philippine Development Forum (PDF) in Clark, Pampanga.

SENIOR officials of Asian economies will draft a second report pertaining to proposed free-trade agreements as part of their preparations for the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (Apec) leaders’ summit in Peru late this year.

AN international hotel-chain operator is reportedly putting up the first high-end hotel in Iloilo City inside an old airport property acquired last year by Megaworld Corp., the Philippines’ second-largest real-estate developer.

Euphoric.

This, in a word, was how the lawyer of human-rights victims under the Marcos regime expressed his sentiments after the Singaporean High Court denied the Philippine government’s claim to the Marcoses Swiss deposits.

THE Philippines’ overall manufacturing output went up slightly, owing to significant increases in the production of leather goods and wood and wood products.

A SMALL town in Mactan, Cebu, is planning to reclaim an island off its shores and convert it into an 18-hole golf course.

Summer is considered the peak season for consuming electricity at home. Aside from the fact that the hot months usually raise the consumption levels of customers due to the use of air conditioners, refrigerators,