The Cities of Valenzuela and Angeles, Pampanga entered into a sisterhood pact for a mutually beneficial exchange of best practices on industrialization, investments generation and people-oriented governance.

City Mayor Sherwin T. Gatchalian of Valenzuela and City Mayor Atty. Edgardo D. Pamintuan of Angeles, signed the Sister Cities Agreement on January 25, 2012 at the Angeles City Council Session Hall witnessed by their respective city council members.

They agree to share the common desire to promote and foster strong special ties, mutual understanding, friendship and goodwill.  There would be exchanges in science and technology, culture and arts, tourism, planning and urban development, education and sports, environmental protection, agriculture, public health and social services, and other practical assets.

Angeles City Council approved Resolution No. 6275, Series of 2011, authorizing the establishment of Sister Cities’ relationship between them and Valenzuela. Complimentarily, the City Council of Valenzuela approved Resolution No. 174, Series of 2011, providing for the same.

In Mayor WIN’s message during the event, he hailed Mayor Pamintuan for his versatility; being a lawyer and an executive administrator who catapulted Angeles to become the “Rising Star” of Pampanga.  He commended the city’s high number of investors, which, for him is the number one evidence if a local government is performing well.

Mayor Pamintuan deems the newly-established twinning relationship as a vital tool in transforming Angeles into the “Top Entertainment City” of the country by adapting some of Valenzuela’s consumer and service-oriented principles.

Valenzuela bears the reputation of employing a corporate style of management. The local employees are considered as its prime assets, the citizens as valued customers, and “Valenzuela City,” as a trusted brand name.

The tangible manifestation of their similar commitment to support each other includes the rise of dialysis centers in both territories. The construction of Valenzuela City West Emergency Hospital and Dialysis Center in Barangay Dalandanan and Angeles City’s Dialysis Center adjacent to Lagatin Memorial Medical Center, aims to bring medical assistance closer to those who are suffering from renal failure.

Angeles recently ground broke the US$ 50-million project in partnership with Cebu Pacific for a pilot school and training facility, to bring world-class aviation industry to the region. While tertiary education dominates the news waves in Angeles, Valenzuela, likewise, stirs the local media for its quality projects on basic education.

Thrust on education is also an evident priority of the sister cities.  Last year, Valenzuela City was credited with due prestige for prevailing in the National Achievement Test (NAT) for Elementary for School Year 2011-2012 in the National Capital Region (NCR). Furthermore, the consistent construction of public school buildings alleviated the problems on congestion, maintaining the student-classroom ratio of 48:1 against the NCR average of 85:1.

The monumental agreement was culminated with an exchange of symbolic gifts that portray Angeles and Valenzuela’s strong ties and common vision.  Angeles gifted Valenzuela with a carved mythical phoenix juxtaposed to a human body which they referred to as “Bagius Ning Angeles,” to symbolize their resiliency and indomitable spirit rising from the ashes of Mt. Pinatubo. Valenzuela likewise presented them with “Balangay ng Kaunlaran,” a boat woodcraft which represents the sister cities’ upright direction towards transparent and noble governance.