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Exemptions to cityhood could send wrong signal: Sen. Win Gatchalian during Tuesday’s hybrid plenary session December 14, 2021 says creating exemptions to the requirements to cityhood could send the wrong signal that exemptions could be created for municipalities arbitrarily. Gatchalian made the statement during the floor deliberation on Senate Bill No. 255 or the bill seeking to exempt from the population and land area requirement the conversion of a municipality into a component city if it has a locally-generated average annual income of at least P250 million. “Wouldn’t creating exemptions send a wrong signal to those who are innovative, to those who are coming up with ways to attract businesses, those who are coming up with programs that will increase activity in their locality and probably send a signal that exemptions can be made? If you come up with legislation like this, then you can actually skip the line so to speak, and become a city,” Gatchalian said. Sen. Francis Tolentino, sponsor of the measure, said the exemption which highlights the increase in income shows that even small municipalities with lesser population could economically prosper using innovation. (Albert Calvelo/ Senate PRIB)