BY DOMINIQUE GABRIEL G. BAÑAGA
BACOLOD City – It’s “a great picture” for Negros Occidental to be known as one of the richest in the country, according to Gov. Eugenio Jose Lacson.
It gives a good impression to the public, and particularly in attracting more investments both locally and abroad, he said.
In its 2021 Annual Financial Report on Local Governments, the Commission on Audit (COA) ranked the province as the sixth richest, with assets worth P18.025 billion.
However, Lacson clarified, “As far as the provincial government is concerned, we [are] still dependent on the NTA (National Tax Allotment).”
NTA, previously referred to as the Internal Revenue Allotment (IRA), refers to the just share of LGUs from all national taxes or revenues actually realized or collected by the national government, including those collected by the Bureau of the Internal Revenue and Bureau of Customs, among others.
When asked if he had an idea of COA’s criteria, Lacson pointed out that COA’s classification is about assets, and it was his economic team that had submitted the certain reports.
“I’m not sure if it also includes private sectors,” Lacson said.
Negros Occidental was also ranked No. 6 in 2020.
Neighboring province Iloilo was ranked No. 8 with assets pegged at P17.399 billion, an increase of P2.5 billion compared to 2020.
The top spot in the wealthiest provinces in the country, meanwhile, was taken by Cebu with P215.27 billion worth of assets, while Palawan took the top 10 spot with P16.108 billion assets./PN
