Alicia, Isabela

Alicia has a total land area of 15, 410 hectares and 64, 339 total population as of 2009. 71% of the total land area is an agricultural land which makes Alicia primarily an agricultural municipality best suited for the intensive production of rice and corn. Farming is its major livelihood and rice its major product and resource.

Alicia is politically subdivided into 34 barangays: [2]

Alicia was once called "Angadanan Viejo" (which means "Old Angadanan") when the new Angadanan was relocated in 1776 to its current location near the Angadanan Creek.[5]

The old Angadanan town was part of the Cagayan Valley province. The entire Cagayan Valley was one large province which the Spaniards called La Provincia del Valle de Cagayan, but divided into two new provinces in 1839 by the Spanish conquistadors. One retained the old name Cagayan which comprised all towns from Aparri to Tumauini; while a new province of Nueva Vizcaya was created composed of all towns from Ilagan City to the Caraballo del Sur including Catalangan, Angadanan (now Alicia), and Palanan, with Camarag (Echague) as its capital.[6]

A Royal Decree was created on 1 May 1856 creating Isabela de Luzon to distinguish it from other Isabelas in the Philippines. It comprised the town of Carig (now Santiago City), Camarag (now Echague), Angadanan (now Alicia), Cauayan, Calanusian (now Reina Mercedes), Gamu, and Ilagan City, all detached from Nueva Vizcaya; while Tumauini and Cabagan were taken from the Cagayan province. It was placed under the jurisdiction of a governor with the capital seat at Ilagan City, where it remains at the present.[6]

When then Philippine President Elpidio Quirino signed Executive Order No. 268 on 28 September 1949, the Old Angadanan was renamed and created the municipality of Alicia in honor of then Quirino's wife, Dona Alicia Syquia Quirino, who was murdered by the Japanese during the Japanese occupation.[7]

In the 2015 census, the population of Alicia, Isabela, was 71,504 people,[3] with a density of 460 inhabitants per square kilometre or 1,200 inhabitants per square mile.

Alicia, as a suburb of a progressive city, Cauayan, Isabela, is also showing signs of progress. Various banking institutions like Landbank of the Philippines, Security Bank,[12] etc. are already present in Alicia. In 2013, popular fast food chain Jollibee has opened[13] its first branch in Alicia which includes Drive Thru service.

The municipality of Alicia belonging to the Third Legislative District of the province of Isabela is governed by a municipal mayor and a municipal council. The first municipal mayor of the town was Glicerio Acosta who was appointed to office by the President of the Philippines upon the creation of Alicia as a municipality in 1949. The mayor and other elective officials are restricted to three (3) consecutive terms, totaling nine (9) years, although a mayor can be elected again after an interruption of one (1) term.

Alicia has two universities that cater to the people of the municipality and other neighboring municipalities and provinces. Alicia is also noted for having the most high-tech school in the region.

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Alicia, Isabela.

• Alicia Profile at PhilAtlas.com
• Local Government of Alicia Isabela
• Municipal Profile at the National Competitiveness Council of the Philippines
• Alicia at the Isabela Government Website
• Local Governance Performance Management System
• Philippine Standard Geographic Code
• Philippine Census Information
• Our Lady of Atocha Colonial Church