Davao, San Juan cities ink sisterhood pact

DAVAO CITY, Oct. 8 (PNA) -- City Mayor Rodrigo R. Duterte, in behalf of Davao City, signed a sisterhood pact with San Juan City Mayor Joseph Victor "JV" Ejercito over the weekend here.

The sisterhood agreement was signed Saturday in front of the 60-man delegation from San Juan City led Ejercito and local officials of Davao City during a luncheon party hosted by Duterte.

Duterte, in his speech, thanked Ejercito and his party for being "brave enough" to visit Davao and pursue relations with the city even if others have shied away due to negative impressions and reports brought about by the conflict in Central Mindanao.

Ejercito, in response, called the mayor a "legend".

"It is not just the beauty of Davao that has attracted us but it is the discipline and the way it is run by Mayor Duterte," Ejercito said.

With Ejercito were his vice-mayor, members of the San Juan City Council and all the department head of the local government offices.

The group was also in Davao for its annual planning session held at the Pearl Farm Beach Resort.

"We hope to learn a lot from Davao in terms of policies as well as share what we call our "economic miracle" in San Juan to increase the income of Davao," Ejercito said.

He said San Juan only had 300 million in annual income but the City Government was able to turn it around, and now the city is earning P1 billion per year.