By: BEN SERRANO, Correspondent BUTUAN CITY- Butuan Councilor Engr. Sergio Pascual who is Chairman of the City Council Cooperative Committee and member of the committees on Infra, Environment and Investments said under federal system of government mineral rich and agricultural resources rich Caraga Region will stand to benefit if properly implemented and managed. In an exclusive interview with Pascual, an independent candidate for Vice Mayor in the last May 9 election claimed that he supported Duterte’s bid for candidacy and used his own resources and money to campaign house to house here in Butuan City for Duterte. “The problem with the current unitary form of government, he asserted, is the unfair distribution of funds between the local government and national government. Under Duterte’s federalism it will be the reverse LGUs stands to benefit more,” Pascual said. Pascual added that LGUs remit all of their income to the national government and receive an Internal Revenue Allotment (IRA) of only 40% of the taxes collected by the Bureau of Internal Revenue. Pascual said the untapped rich agricultural resources of Caraga Region due to its very fertile soil will be develop since the region can now act on its own to entice investments to develop its huge agriculture potentials and untapped tourism potentials which are underdeveloped and not promoted by the present handlers of tourism sector in the region. “You see, just put your feet on fertile soils of Caraga Region and roots will grow in it. This is how rich our potentials in agriculture that has been mismanaged over the years. You go around Caraga Region especially in Surigao del Norte and Surigao del Sur and in almost all provinces, you can see in your naked eyes, the crystal clear beaches, caves, sceneries and beautiful mountains and rural areas that were not promoted well in both huge national and international tourism markets,” Pascual added. Pascual is confident that under Federal System, Caraga Region will emerged as the richest region in the country because of its huge agriculture, forestry, tourism, mining and human resources rich potentials that are mismanaged, untapped over the years and even decades. “We are not talking yet of Deuterium fuel which are real since we have rich deposits here in Caraga and the huge petroleum and natural gas deposits that are all not made public because some wanted to monopolized it for vested interests,” Pascual said.