ILIGAN City — Residents of Iligan and neighboring communities can soon expect faster access to state clearances and administrative workflows after the National Bureau of Investigation broke ground on its first permanent district office here, ending 30 years of operating from temporary facilities.
The National Bureau of Investigation formally launched construction operations for its new three-story Iligan District Office building in Barangay Del Carmen on Wednesday, June 10, 2026. The ₱69.48-million facility is scheduled for completion within 11 months.
Once fully operational, the modern infrastructure asset will house the NBI Clearance Processing Section, Administrative Section, Investigation Division, and Forensics Unit. The consolidation aims to provide a more efficient environment for both state personnel and civilian applicants.
Three Decades of Relocation
For job seekers, local professionals, and regional residents who regularly secure statutory clearances, the permanent office ends decades of logistical uncertainty.
"The NBI Iligan District Office has not had a permanent home for over 30 years. We transferred from one office to another, and since 2018 have occupied a temporary facility in Tambo-Hinaplanon. Today, that long journey finally moves toward a lasting solution," said NBI Iligan District Office Chief Atty. Medrobel Ylanan.
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The construction campaign is funded through the bureau's line allocation under the national General Appropriations Act and will be executed under the oversight of the Department of Public Works and Highways.
Ylanan noted that managing sensitive operations from rotating temporary offices had presented long-term service delivery friction and impacted staff morale.
Resolving Real Estate Delays
The new infrastructure will occupy a 2,000-square-meter plot donated by the Iligan City Government in 2015, an initiative originally spearheaded by the late Atty. Alex Caburnay. Development remained stalled for years due to complex property legal issues, which municipal administrators recently cleared.
Mayor Frederick W. Siao characterized the groundbreaking as a long-overdue development for the highly urbanized locality.
"For many years, we waited for this project to materialize. Today, we are finally seeing it happen," Siao said. "As a highly urbanized city, it is important for Iligan to have a permanent NBI office where residents can conveniently access vital government services."
NBI Director Atty. Melvin A. Matibag stated the asset deployment underscores a national directive to decentralize essential state capabilities.
"Residents of Iligan and nearby communities will soon have a modern facility where they can secure NBI clearances and access other services without having to travel far," Matibag said.
Matibag added that engineering teams are constructing the facility to meet rigorous seismic safety standards appropriate for a disaster-prone territory.
To expand immediate regional access ahead of the permanent office's completion, bureau administrators also inaugurated a new satellite operations center in Kauswagan, Lanao del Norte, expanding Northern Mindanao’s public safety service grid.
