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LANAO DEL NORTE, Philippines – Despite bearing the nickname of “City of Majestic Waterfalls,” Iligan City’s waterworks system is losing water due to leaks.
In 2024, the Commission on Audit found that Iligan City lost over half of its water to its faulty water system. The Iligan City Waterworks System (ICWS) attributed this to aging underground pipes, which could not be addressed due to low manpower and equipment.
Iligan City is a budding highly-urbanized city. According to the 2020 census, around 363,115 people call Iligan home, making it Northern Mindanao’s second largest city.
But it still has a long way to go to fully address the needs of its growing population. Looking ahead, waste management and infrastructure — apart from water supply — remain key issues for the city.
In the 2025 polls, Iligan’s mayoral candidates are presenting distinct plans to address pressing issues such as water supply, waste management, and ways to attract investments.
With these competing visions, Iliganons face a pivotal choice: to continue with incumbent Mayor Frederick “Freddie” Siao’s trajectory of improving foundational services or to embrace new leadership promising reform.
Red, blue and green
The frontrunners in the mayoral race are Siao and the city’s former administrator, Leony Roy Ga.
Siao is currently seeking reelection under the Asenso Iliganon Party (AIP). After serving as Iligan City’s representative for two terms, he won his first mandate as mayor in 2022 with over half of the vote.
Siao describes himself as someone who is well acquainted with the city’s woes. He told Rappler in an interview that his tenure as the city’s sports director helped him understand the importance of investing in the youth. Meanwhile, his six years at the House of Representatives taught him how to address complex problems involving multiple stakeholders.
“People now voice out what they like and what they don’t like. So if you don’t listen to them, it’s going to be your own failure. So, I learned to adjust. I learned to adapt,” he said.
Meanwhile, Ga has served Iligan City’s police force in various capacities. He was first assigned to Iligan City as an operations officer in 1994. Then he was eventually appointed city director for the first time in 2014, but this was short-lived after he was relieved over the alleged ambush of former lawmaker Vicente Belmonte. (READ: Iligan lawmaker hurt, 4 killed in ambush)
The retired police colonel had his second shot at leading Iligan City’s police force when he was appointed by now-Congressman Celso Regencia from 2016 to 2018. Ga has also served as Regencia’s senior political officer.
As he steps into the political spotlight, Ga hopes to introduce what he describes as a “Bag-ong Iligan” (new Iligan) through his party’s Iligan Vision 2050.
Siao’s reelection bid is also challenged by former mayor and National Commission of Senior Citizens’ chair Franklin Quijano.
The fourth contender for Iligan City Hall is Rolando Anduyan, former director of Police Regional Office-Northern Mindanao, who is campaigning on promises to bring back people-centric governance.
Water works
The fourth pillar of Ga’s Iligan Vision 2050 highlights the importance of bringing clean, affordable water to households. Ga’s United Iligan Party (UIP) vows to modernize and expand ICWS by introducing high-quality pipelines and new pumping stations.
“Iligan’s system cannot remain the same if we want our city to progress. We need to modernize our water supply, infrastructure, and transportation to make life easier for Iliganons,” he said in Cebuano.
He also hopes to construct new water filtration systems, desalination plants, and deep wells to boost water supply.
Siao has admitted the ICWS’ shortcomings in fixing the city’s leaky water system. But he said that the local government alone cannot afford to overhaul the local pipeline.
The Iligan City government is currently exploring the introduction of new players which will allow Iliganons to choose the distributor that can best address their needs.
“It’s not privatization, but rather an option for the people to have safe, drinkable water,” he said.
Siao also took note of state auditors’ proposals to hike collections to allow the government to subsidize ICWS’ operation and maintenance costs.
Waste management
Another key issue residents and aspiring officials identified is the city’s waste management.
In 2024, a citizen participatory audit submitted a report to Siao’s office flagging improper garbage collection and the lack of adequate disposal sites. The report also made mention of an illegal dumpsite operating near the City Central Materials Recovery and Composting Facility located in Barangay Bonbonon.
Siao said the illegal dumpsite has since been closed and the city government is ready to allocate funds to construct the sanitary landfill once the feasibility study is completed. He added that the local government contracted a firm to segregate the city’s trash, and local cement companies are open to turning residual waste into alternative fuel.
To improve trash collection, the city government also purchased dump trucks to ensure efficient and regular collection.
For Siao, the city’s garbage woes have yet to be completely solved, but he said his administration is making good progress in finding a long-term remedy.
The UIP’s platforms also propose the development of an eco-friendly landfill and the development of recycling initiatives. Ga also wants to implement a strict waste segregation policy and establish an efficient garbage collection system.
“Let’s not wait for the garbage problem to get worse,” he said in a statement.
Building industries in Iligan
While Iligan’s economic growth slowed to 5.7% in 2023, the Philippine Statistics Authority cited a boom in several sectors such as accommodation and food service activities (23.8%), transport and storage (21.4%), as well as construction (15.8%). This translates to an economy worth P88.4 billion.
Siao wants to improve the ease of doing business by streamlining the process to secure the necessary permits. He also established a one-stop shop so aspiring entrepreneurs can obtain their permits within minutes.
“And then the next step would be digitalization for the entire local government. So the transactions are faster, [with a] touch of a button they can see how much they need to pay,” he said in a mix of English and Cebuano.
Siao added that the Iligan Investment Promotion Center has been wooing investors to the city, including the likes of SM and KCC Malls. “They’re just waiting for the right time to start constructing.”
On the other hand, Ga wants to establish economic zones with modern infrastructure and tax incentives to entice potential investors. He also called for an overhaul of the Iligan Investment Promotion Code that Siao filed when he was a city councilor.
Ga believes the ordinance needs to be revised to make the registration process easier. “Simplified registration, reduced red tape, and clear policies will encourage business growth,” he said.
Is one term enough?
For Siao, his first term has been focused on establishing a solid foundation to ensure Iligan’s continued sustainable development in the long-term. He hopes residents would see the slow but steady improvements he has made in the city over the years, and entrust him with another term so he could continue developing Iligan City in accordance with his Iligan Development Goals.
“The first term is that you lay down the foundation. The second term will be seeing the fruit of what you’re doing. And the third term would be fixing,” he said.
But Siao’s opponents believe progress has been too slow, and addressing the concerns of Iliganons requires more immediate solutions.
Given several mayoral contenders with varying backgrounds and priorities, Iliganons will soon decide whose vision best aligns with their aspirations for a more livable city.
Whoever sits in city hall after June 30 will be tasked with building a solid foundation that will allow Iligan to realize its huge potential. – with research from Forelleah Esperanza/Rappler.com
Forelleah Esperanza is a Rappler intern. Learn more about Rappler’s internship program here.
