Camarines Sur has also undergone more than a few facelifts, more reborn perhaps for the better.
A century ago, the seat of the provincial government was situated in downtown Naga, housed in a building of adobe and cement. For several years, the edifice was the center for government activities and transaction in the provincial sector. It continued to witness changes and transitions in the rules and implementations caused by the shifting of one administration to another. This scenario, however, was not as stable as the structure seemed to be as a great transformation in the structure of political subdivisions would later on to take its pace.
December 15, 1948 marked a memorable date for both Naga and Camarines Sur with the former exulting over its proclamation as a chartered city as embodied in Republic Act (RA) 305. It was also a significant event for the province as it was perhaps the beginning of what would later be the long travail of the province in its search for a new site for the Provincial Capitol building.
With Naga as a chartered city, high standing officials of the province had eventually expressed the need for a new location of the seat of the provincial government.
Governor Juan F. Trivi o, who assumed office in 1952, initiated the first move to transfer the Provincial Capitol and started the creation of the Provincial Capitol Complex. The Municipality of Pili, 15 kilometers south of Naga City was the chosen ground.
In 1955, Republic Act 1336 known as An Act Transferring the Site of the Provincial Capitol of the Province of Camarines Sur from the city of Naga to the barrio of Palestina, Municipality of Pili in the same Province was passed seeking for the transfer of the Provincial Capitol building. It was duly approved on the 16th of June on the same year.
The plan being made public, several individuals expressed their desire in donating a lot for the new location of the Provincial Capitol building. The first offer was a 16 hectare lot in Barangay Palestina in Pili from Roberto Soler. All things were set except for the fund in financing the expenses in the construction of the new edifice. The national government at that time could not aid to the province because of other priorities.
Then Soler, for the failure of the government to begin its construction within two years as stipulated in the contract, cancelled his donation.
It was under the administration of Governor Maleniza that another resolution was approved. Republic Act 3407 came into existence, creating the provision which gave authority to the President of the Philippines in selecting the new Capitol site to be recommended by a committee.
The committee proved to be of great help. In 1962, 3 possible sites were considered upon including: the Hacienda Marasigan at Brgy. San Jose, a lot within the Poblacion, and an area along the Anayan-Partido road.
The selection was already left to the discretion of the president of the Philippines and by virtue of Executive Order(EO) 41 issued by then President Diosdado Macapagal on June 16, 1953, the 67-hectare Hacienda Marasigan was declared as the new site for the Provincial Capitol.
In 1964, eleven years after the declaration, the groundbreaking ceremonies and laying of cornerstone were held, graced by then President Macapagal.
A year later, the construction for the building was started. All could have gone well but on the same year for the beginning of the construction, a case had been filed in court questioning the validity of the construction. Because of the case and the reluctance of Governor Armando Cledera to resume the Capitol construction due to lack of funds, the provincial government's objective in building the new site for Capitol was temporarily put to a halt.
In 1968, then Mayor Jose B. Velarde of Pili had the Municipal Board passed a resolution which sought the gradual transfer of all the provincial government offices to the Capital town which was already Pili. The same decree also asked for the transfer of the Capitol site from the Marasigan lot to a site within the Poblacion or at Barangay Anayan but the move consequently caused the Marasigan family to decide not to donate their lot to the provincial government.
The Capitol Site Selection Committee was then organized. Six possible sites were deliberated upon. These six included: the Marcos Stadium(now the Freedom Stadium), a 4-hectare lot fronting the Marcos Stadium, Cadang-Cadang Area, Marasigan Site, Pawili-Anayan Junction and lastly the Don Susano Rodriguez donation of a 15 hectare lot. The committee finally voted upon the last site.
It was during the term of former President Ferdinand Marcos when Executive Order (EO) No. 48 was issued, designating the site of the New Provincial Capitol. But before the commencement of the construction for the new Capitol site, on June 26, 1976, tragedy struck, a big fire torched the Provincial Capitol building, including important papers and public documents of the province. But also as a result, the construction of the Capitol building was hastened, a contract was signed by the Bensia Construction of Naga City, a 3-storey building with reinforced concrete, with twin RIB and corrugated galvanized iron roofing on steel and wooden roof framing came into completion. The Provincial Capitol measured 3, 528.18 square meters.
In addition, satellite buildings of the Regional Trial Court branches, Provincial Nutrition Center, the Post Office and the Kadiwa were also built.The 700-km access road from the Maharlika Highway was concreted.
And with such beginnings the present Provincial Capitol Complex was founded, now with its impressive expanse of buildings and scenic spots which qualify it as tourist spot, the Province can do well to be proud.
