₱50-M PAGCOR center anchors Tagkawayan resiliency complex

By Rowena T. Cruz PAGCOR and Tagkawayan officials mark the recent inauguration of the ₱50-million Socio-Civic Center with a symbolic ke...

By Rowena T. Cruz

PAGCOR and Tagkawayan officials mark the recent inauguration of the ₱50-million Socio-Civic Center with a symbolic key turnover at the town’s Resiliency Complex. (Reden de Villa)

TAGKAWAYAN, Quezon - Built for emergencies, the ₱50-million PAGCOR Socio-Civic Center was inaugurated and formally turned over recently, at Tagkawayan’s Resiliency Complex in Barangay Munting Parang. Originally funded as a Multi-Purpose Evacuation Center, the completed structure is now identified by the municipal government as the PAGCOR Socio-Civic Center.

Mayor Luis Oscar “Carlo” T. Eleazar led the inauguration and formal turnover of the ₱50-million facility in Tagkawayan. PAGCOR Community Relations and Services Department Senior Manager Joaquin Abejar Jr. represented the agency and delivered a message on behalf of Chairman and CEO Alejandro H. Tengco.

Official PAGCOR records show that Tagkawayan received ₱25 million on Oct. 27, 2021, as the first tranche of a ₱50-million grant for the construction of the evacuation center. PAGCOR described the town as a typhoon-prone Quezon municipality where covered courts and classrooms had been used as temporary evacuation sites during calamities.

Eleazar said the PAGCOR-funded facility was the first structure built in the Resiliency Complex and became the foundation for concentrating emergency and public-service facilities at the site. The municipal government documented the ₱50-million project in Barangay Munting Parang as part of the complex while construction was underway in May 2022.

“Napakalaking bagay po nito sapagkat kung maalala ninyo, ito iyong unang struktura na naitayo dito sa ating Resiliency Complex. At naging pundasyon kung bakit natin plinano na itong lugar na ito ay maging sentro ng paghahanda at pagtugon natin sa anumang emergency o kalamidad,” Eleazar said.

Abejar urged the local government and residents to preserve the completed facility so it can continue serving the community for generations. He also singled out the quality of the Tagkawayan building while discussing other PAGCOR-funded facilities he had attended for inauguration.

“Mahalin po natin itong building na ito at pangalagaan hanggang sa mga susunod na salinlahi ay makita nila at mapakinabangan. Sa limampu’t limang building na aming pinasinayaan, I would claim that this building is not the best, it’s one of the best buildings ever built,” Abejar said.

The Sept. 15 turnover completes a project cycle that began with PAGCOR’s funding release in 2021 and continued with construction at the Munting Parang site documented by the municipality in 2022. The Socio-Civic Center now stands beside the Super Health Center within the Resiliency Complex, where Tagkawayan has concentrated facilities supporting public services and disaster preparedness.