THE Association of Southeast Nations (Asean) 2017 National Organizing Committee (NOC) on Thursday, December 1, formed the Task Group Bacolod in preparation for the city’s hosting of the summit meetings in March next year.
Some 160 delegates are expected to arrive on March 14-16 and 22-24.
The task group is headed by Chief Superintendent Renato Gumban, director of Police Regional Office in Negros Island Region, as commander.
It is comprised of 21 national government agencies, including, among others, the Philippine National Police, Department of Interior and Local Government, Department of Tourism, Department of Health, and Bureau of Fire Protection.
“(In terms of security), we need to prepare the province and the city as early as now,” said Gumban, who led the first orientation meeting at the Bacolod Pavillon Hotel on Thursday.
A series of conferences among the members of the task group will follow, he added.
On November 30, the Asean 2017 NOC team arrived in Bacolod for an ocular inspection of the venues and the billeting areas.
The NOC, led by Ambassador Marciano Paynor Jr., director-general for Operations of the Asean 2017, inspected the SMX Convention Center Bacolod, Planta Centro Bacolod Hotel and Residences, L’Fisher Hotel, Business Inn, and Circle Inn.
The Philippines’ hosting will coincide with the 50th anniversary of Asean.
Founded in 1967, the Asean is composed of member-states Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Brunei Darussalam, Vietnam, Cambodia, Lao PDR and Myanmar.
The selection of Bacolod as host was finalized in October. Mayor Evelio Leonardia then received a letter from Paynor, confirming Bacolod as among the host-cities.
“As one of the founding members of the Asean, the Philippines will host the Asean meetings in 2017 as part of its endeavor to intensify community-building though enhanced regional cooperation and integration among its member-countries,” Paynor then said.
He also informed Leonardia that the meetings that will be convened by various lead government agencies and will be attended by high-level delegates such as senior officials.
“Bacolod City has a critical role in this national hosting,” Paynor said.
Leonardia, for his part, said “We are thrilled and honored to host this very significant event especially in the light of the Asean integration program which can affect our daily lives.”
“We can no longer think of ourselves as simply a Philippine city, we must now think of Bacolod as a city of Southeast Asia and align our goals with this,” he added.
In September, Foreign Affairs Assistant Secretary Ma. Hellen de la Vega, director-general for Asean Philippines-National Secretariat, visited Bacolod and revealed that the city is being considered as one of the host-cities.
