Jose Mari Chan named honorary Bacolod City Mayor

By Paulo Loreto Lim

With Bacolod City preparing to celebrate the Bacolaodiat Festival, scheduled to take place next week, from February 15 to 18, singer-songwriter Jose Mari Chan was named honorary Bacolod City mayor during the celebration.

“Chan is a Bacolod resident who has sustained and kept alive the sugar industry in the Province of Negros Occidental,” Bacolod City Mayor Evelio Leonardia said in the order designating the singer as honorary mayor. “The City of Bacolod and its constituents recognize Chan as a businessman who has contributed to the economic well-being of Bacolod and Negros Occidental.”

Towards the end of last month, the Bacolod City Sangguniang Panlungsod passed a resolution declaring Chan an “adopted son of Bacolod.”

Chan, who was born in Iloilo City, serves as chairman and CEO of the Binalbagan Isabela Sugar Company, Inc. (BISCOM) and the A. Chan Sugar Corporation.

He is also famous for writing and performing one of the most iconic OPM Christmas carols, “Christmas in Our Hearts,” which earned him the nickname, “The Father of Philippine Christmas Music.”/PLL, WDJ