Barangay leaders, urban poor endorse SM project at Clark

CLARK, Pampanga – Overwhelming support for the planned Shoe Mart (SM) shopping mall project inside the Clark Special Economic Zone has snowballed following endorsements by barangay and urban poor leaders in Angeles City and Mabalacat town.

The Liga ng mga Barangay (LMB) of Angeles City, Central Luzon’s premier urban center, recently passed Resolution No. 5, giving a thumbs-up to the multimillion-peso mall and shopping complex in Clark.

Its counterpart in Mabalacat, the Association of Barangay Councils (ABC), had likewise approved the entry of the giant mall through a resolution. In a similar move, the Mabalacat Federation of Urban Poor Associations (MFUPA) – the town’s biggest non-government organization – gave its nod to the planned SM mall in Clark.

Anticipating the economic benefits the mall project will bring into the Metro Clark area, the resolutions cited the direct and indirect employment to be created for residents of communities that are contiguous to Clark. The project is estimated to open at least 12,000 jobs for local residents.

"The members of this (LMB) believe that true economic development can only be sustained through regional symbiosis and the infusion of new businesses, including SM, is a step toward the right decision," states the Angeles City resolution signed by nine officers and directors of LMB, including is president Efren C. Dela Cruz.

"We believe that SM Clark will greatly help in ushering socio-economic development by increasing employment opportunities for the people of Pampanga," it furthered.

In Mabalacat, ABC Chairman and Poblacion Barangay Captain Amauri Tiglao was unanimously joined by village chieftains in expressing support for the SM project.

The MFUPA, an organization comprising of 52 urban poor associations, believes that the SM mall project will pave the way for an improved business climate in the Metro Clark area.

"The construction of the SM Mall at Clark will invigorate the weakening investment trading and open the gateway to another competitive market," the resolution said.

Jerry Basilio, MFUPA president, said that the primary concern of their group is to provide employment and livelihood for the town’s urban poor sector.

"The consensus recognizes the significant number of unemployed urban residents and the SM establishment should serve as an alternative to minimize unemployment," MFUPA resolution furthered.