Molave, Zamboanga del Sur

Molave
Municipality
Municipality of Molave
Portion of Molave's Poblacion
Flag Seal
Map of Zamboanga del Sur with Molave highlighted
OpenStreetMap
Molave Location in the Philippines
Coordinates: 8°05′36″N 123°29′06″E / 8.0933°N 123.485°E / 8.0933; 123.485
Country	Philippines
Region	Zamboanga Peninsula
Province	Zamboanga del Sur
District	1st district
Founded	June 16, 1948
Barangays	List 25 (see Barangays)
Government  [1]
• Type	Sangguniang Bayan
• Mayor	Cyril Reo A. Glepa
• Vice Mayor	Monalisa J. Glepa
• Representative	Divina Grace C. Yu
• Municipal Council	Members Desiderio L. Jabello Victor Jose M. Geromo Jr. Zadrac S. Bermejo Jonathan S. Uy Linda M. Saniel Ricardo P. Golez Jacosalem A. Perong Jr. Illuwil D. Orbita
• Electorate	34,204 voters (2022)
Area [2]
• Total	251.50 km2 (97.10 sq mi)
Elevation	50 m (160 ft)
Highest elevation	303 m (994 ft)
Lowest elevation	11 m (36 ft)
Population  (2020 census)[3]
• Total	53,140
• Density	210/km2 (550/sq mi)
• Households	11,937
Economy
• Income class	1st municipal income class
• Poverty incidence	18.27 % (2021)[4]
• Revenue	₱ 261.2 million (2020)
• Assets	₱ 971.6 million (2020)
• Expenditure	₱ 173.3 million (2020)
• Liabilities	₱ 202.8 million (2020)
Service provider
• Electricity	Zamboanga del Sur 1 Electric Cooperative (ZAMSURECO 1)
Time zone	UTC+8 (PST)
ZIP code	7023
PSGC	097319000
IDD : area code	+63 (0)62
Native languages	Subanon Cebuano Chavacano Tagalog
Website	molave.gov.ph

Molave, officially known as the Municipality of Molave (Cebuano: Lungsod sa Molave; Subanen: Benwa Molave; Chavacano: Municipalidad de Molave; Maranao: Inged a Molave; Tagalog: Bayan ng Molave), is a 1st class municipality in the province of Zamboanga del Sur, Philippines. In the 2020 census, it had 53,140 people.^[3] It is in the eastern part of the province of Zamboanga del Sur, and has an area of 21,685 hectares (83.73 square miles). The name "Molave" refers to the tree (and its hardwood) that was common in the area. Its economy is focused on agricultural production, and 1,378.5 hectares (3,406 acres) of fertile land is irrigated and planted with rice. Corn, coconut, cassava, banana, camote and various vegetables are also grown. These are marketed to neighboring towns and cities, and reach Cebu. Due to its strategic location, Molave is becoming the commercial hub of the Salug Valley. It is the most populous municipality in Zamboanga del Sur, and the third most populous in Region IX.

Molave originated during the 1930s as a small settlement in a marshy jungle, originally known as Salug. The Subanons were early settlers of the area; the fertile land of the Salug Valley later attracted settlers from throughout the Philippines, making the area ethnically diverse. On June 16, 1948, the settlement was separated from the municipality of Aurora as a separate municipality and designated the new capital of the province of Zamboanga.^[5] Molave was the provincial capital until Zamboanga was divided into the provinces of Zamboanga del Norte and Zamboanga del Sur; it became part of Zamboanga del Sur, with the town of Pagadian as its capital.^[6]

During the 1920’s a huge group of people from Luzon and Visayas, left their homes and migrated to Mindanao, seeking fortune and a good life in the southern part of the Philippines. Some of these settlers were able to find lands in the current Zamboanga peninsula, which gave birth to the prominent towns and cities of the del Sur and del Norte region.

             Some of these places became the pillars of development during the young, frontier days. Fostering the bases for agricultural, social, and economic growth in their respective areas. Today, these places have become a beacon of stability and progress and is still continuing to grow bigger and stronger for the future generations. One of these places is the humble, yet bustling town of Molave, the heart of the Salug Valley.  

             But before Molave grew to a progressive Class A Municipality it is today, it first started as a humble barangay under the Aurora town, known as Salug, and is a land surrounded by swampy lands, forests, hills, and watersheds that made it viable for the indigenous people live in.

             The Subanen tribe has lived in the lands for generations before they encountered the first settlers. Using kaingin as their farming method, they were able to clear out huge chunks of forest in the flatlands and cultivated the land with indigenous crops like corn and some native rice.

             During a period of migration to the south, most of the lands the Subanen tended were emptied and sold to the new migrants. Through an old trading method, the barter method, the migrants were able to purchase huge hectares of land by trading salt, clothing, and other items that were new or significantly important to the survival of the indigenous people.

             Over the years, through that same exchange, the settlers from Visayas were able to own huge portions of land that comprises the whole of Salug. Some of these settlers were the lineage of the prominent families of the humble town that established Molave into a town of its own that it is now.

             The pioneering families who have acquired significant areas of land and settled in the municipality were- the Lobitañas- said to be the first to acquire lands from the Subanens that stretched from what is now Barangay Sudlon down to a huge portion of Barangay Gabunon. The Guillens, the Blancias and the Ariosas. In the other part of town, families like that of Col. Villasis and the Maestrados have also significantly established settlements that even up to present, sitios in Barangays Miligan and Culo are named after them. Other emerging families like the Lumapas clan and the Magtubas followed soon after and settled in the areas known today as the three Barangays that comprises the Poblacion.

             During this early period of the town’s history, the place was still a slumbering barangay slowly being filled with pioneers braving the swamps and forests of Molave but still tending the fields as the Subanens did, albeit in a more industrial, progressive manner.

             But as people from Luzon and Visayas migrated further to the south, the town was slowly filled with families that had a lot more to offer than just farming and agriculture.  Slowly, the vast fields were converted into places of living and commercial expanses- a development fostered both by local settlers and several Filipino-Chinese clans.

More infrastructure was placed to cater the needs of the growing town. Water and sanitation have become an important factor to the town’s growth. A lot of jetmatics were erected to help sustain the growing population, overshadowing the use of wells in the area. During this time, more roads were also paved for the growing number of people going in and out of the barangay. Somewhere along the transition as a bustling area of trade and commerce, the name Salug was changed to Molave, the distinguished town we all know today.

On June 16, 1948, the growing town of Molave has finally seceded from its mother town of Aurora and became its own municipality. The creation of the municipality was made possible by the former congressman, Hon. Juan S. Alano authorizing Republic Act No. 286 titled, An Act Creating the Municipality of Molave in the Province of Zamboanga and making said Municipality the Capital of the Province. Unfortunately, the town never bested Dipolog City as the then provincial capital.

Regardless, Molave carried on and along with being a new municipality came its first officers to lead the young town. Hon. Pelagio Blancia and Saturnino Mendoza became the first mayor and vice-mayor respectively by means of appointment.

Mayor Pelagio Blancia, along with his appointed council met regularly on their makeshift government office, the first floor of Pelagio Blancia’s house. In there, they would convene and pass ordinances that supported the growth of their beloved town.

During their time, they were able to build bridges that connected the town from its Sitios, erected schools, paved more ways, created more precincts, and infrastructures that became the steppingstone towards Molave’s urbanization through the creation of the Molave waterworks and the first electricity concession.

In 1951, the first town election was held. Javier Ariosa emerged victorious on his campaign and seated as the first elected Mayor of the town. He also transferred the government’s seat of power from Camp 7 into the Poblacion, ushering in the shift of town activities into the official townsite. This was also the start of construction for the Municipal Hall that used to be in the municipal building’s current place in Poblacion.

During his office, he and his council was able to build on the foundation Hon. Blancia and the previous councilors made and created more infrastructures and amenities for the people to have a better life while living in the blooming town. This ushered Molave’s growth and in turn becoming an influence in the Zamboanga peninsula.

Slowly, Molave emerged into the modern town that we know today, with a bustling local economy, primarily driven by local industries. sThe efforts of the pioneers and the previous officers proved to be paramount to Molave’s development. From their ordinances that emphasized on sanitation to their urbanization plans and land use, they created a town not just of agricultural significance, but also a town of economic importance due to the booming and successful businesses that built their foundations in Molave.

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Molave is in the northeastern part of the province of Zamboanga del Sur, at the foot of a hill, and is bounded by the Salug River and mountains which protect it from typhoons. It is bordered by the municipalities of Tambulig in the east, Mahayag in the west, Josefina and Province of Zamboanga del Norte in the north, and Ramon Magsaysay in the south. Molave is about 38 kilometres (24 mi) from Pagadian, the provincial capital, and 58 kilometres (36 mi) from Ozamiz. It is 15 metres (49 ft) above sea level.

Molave is divided into two topographical areas. The east and southwest lowlands, which cover 30 percent of its total land area, consist of nine barangays and are generally flat, swampy and marshy. The upland, which covers 70 percent of Molave's total area, is hilly and mostly deforested. The terrain is moderately sloping to rolling, with the overall grade varying from 10 percent in the lowlands to 27 percent in the mountains.^{[contradictory]}

The municipality has two types of soil. The lowlands and part of the upper barangays are composed of San Miguel silt loam, and is well-suited for cultivation. Adtoyon clay loam is found in the upland areas, and can be used for grazing and a variety of crops such as corn, cassava, and camote.

Molave is the fourth type on the PAGASA climatology map, with rainfall evenly distributed throughout the year. Its average temperature is 29.7 °C (85.5 °F).

Molave is divided into 25 barangays. Each barangay consists of puroks while some have sitios.

Population of Molave

Year	Pop.	±% p.a.
1960	38,568	—
1970	21,579	−5.64%
1975	22,363	+0.72%
1980	29,698	+5.84%
1990	36,556	+2.10%
1995	40,423	+1.90%
2000	45,082	+2.37%
2007	48,215	+0.93%
2010	48,939	+0.54%
2015	52,006	+1.16%
2020	53,140	+0.43%
Source: Philippine Statistics Authority[8][9][10][11]

Poverty incidence of Molave

5 10 15 20 25 30 2006 24.00 2009 26.46 2012 22.34 2015 29.30 2018 18.59 2021 18.27 Source: Philippine Statistics Authority[12][13][14][15][16][17][18][19]

• Gross sales of registered companies: ₱1,358,640,795
• Total capitalization of new businesses, 2015: ₱150,000,000
• Growth of capitalization of new businesses, 2014–2015: 286.9 percent

Molave is the commercial hub of the Salug Valley. Rice trading, milling and farming are major agricultural industries, others are major non-agricultural industries. Molave's economy is focused on agricultural production; 91.85 percent of its total land area is devoted to agriculture, and 1,378.5 hectares (3,406 acres) are irrigated and planted with rice. Corn, coconut, cassava, bananas, camote, and other vegetables are also grown. They are marketed to neighboring towns and cities as far as Cebu. Molave has 23 farmer cooperatives (19 of which are registered), with a total membership of 7,566.^[20]

Molave has ten barangay health stations, one maternity clinic, 26 health and nutrition posts, and a municipal health center staffed by one rural-health physician, one dentist, one sanitary inspector, three nurses and 11 midwives. It has three private hospitals (Lumapas Hospital, Salug Valley Medical Center and Blancia Hospital), five private clinics, ten pharmacies, and two funeral chapels, the oldest being the Valley of Angels Memorial Chapels establish in 1967 by the Arapoc Family and now has their newly renovated state of the art 2 storey memorial chapels with elevator that offers embalming, burial and air con and non aircon chapels .^[20]

Sports facilities include a municipal gymnasium, three tennis courts, four basketball courts, three volleyball courts and the Molave Regional Pilot School sports complex. Molave also has a wide function hall offered by the now newly renovated Courtyard Business Hotel in Rizal Avenue. A landscaped municipal plaza has a playground. A driving range is in the barangay of Parasan, 4 kilometres (2.5 mi) from Molave.

The Molave Municipal Police station has two commissioned officers and 24 non-commissioned officers. It has two outposts, in the Dipolo and Sudlon barangays. Crime has decreased in recent years, and the 10th Infantry Battalion of the 1st Infantry Division (stationed in Barangay Bag-ong Argao) and the 906th Provincial Mobile Group help to maintain order.^{[20] [failed verification]}

Molave has four private preschools, 23 public and one private elementary school, six primary schools, five secondary schools and four tertiary schools. The secondary schools are:

• Blancia Carreon College Foundation, Inc. (High School Department)^[21]
• Molave Vocational Technical School (MVTS)^[22]
• Parasan National High School
• Sacred Heart Diocesan School
• Simata National High School

The tertiary schools are:

• J.H. Cerilles State College, Molave Campus
• Our Lady Of Triumph Institute of Technology, Molave
• Western Mindanao State University - External Studies Unit, Molave
• Zamboanga del Sur Maritime Institute of Technology

• Official website
• Molave Profile at PhilAtlas.com
• Philippine Standard Geographic Code
• Philippine census information