Caba, La Union

Caba
Municipality
Municipality of Caba
Caba town center along the National Highway
Flag Seal
Motto:  "Arriba Dur-As Caba"
Anthem: Caba Hymn
Map of La Union with Caba highlighted
OpenStreetMap
Caba Location within the Philippines
Coordinates: 16°25′54″N 120°20′41″E / 16.4316°N 120.3446°E / 16.4316; 120.3446
Country	Philippines
Region	Ilocos Region
Province	La Union
District	2nd district
Barangays	17 (see Barangays)
Government  [1]
• Type	Sangguniang Bayan
• Mayor	Donna R. Crispino
• Vice Mayor	Ronnie P. Mangaser
• Representative	Dante S. Garcia
• Municipal Council	Members Donna R. Crispino Arleen G. Crispino Maribel B. Runes Conrado A. Vito Don Mar P. Dugenia Charlyn C. Fesalbon-Reyes Patricio A. Dulay Crisogono D. Hulipas Jr.
• Electorate	17,787 voters (2022)
Area [2]
• Total	46.31 km2 (17.88 sq mi)
Elevation	41 m (135 ft)
Highest elevation	299 m (981 ft)
Lowest elevation	0 m (0 ft)
Population  (2020 census)[3]
• Total	23,119
• Density	500/km2 (1,300/sq mi)
• Households	5,923
Economy
• Income class	4th municipal income class
• Poverty incidence	10.46 % (2021)[4]
• Revenue	₱ 94.98 million (2020), 54.06 million (2012), 56.28 million (2013), 52.08 million (2014), 87.94 million (2015), 108.6 million (2016), 72.75 million (2017), 168 million (2018), 120.2 million (2019), 235.5 million (2021), 226.2 million (2022)
• Assets	₱ 331.1 million (2020), 107.3 million (2012), 128.8 million (2013), 118.4 million (2014), 142.2 million (2015), 180.1 million (2016), 189.1 million (2017), 285 million (2018), 478.9 million (2021), 620.6 million (2022)
• Expenditure	₱ 132.7 million (2020), 37.38 million (2012), 41 million (2013), 46.82 million (2014), 59.97 million (2015), 67.2 million (2016), 60.6 million (2017), 72.66 million (2018), 79.82 million (2019), 97.43 million (2021), 110.4 million (2022)
• Liabilities	₱ 33.44 million (2020), 8.729 million (2012), 17.99 million (2013), 19.54 million (2014), 24.53 million (2015), 27.09 million (2016), 23.89 million (2017), 32.53 million (2018), 29.02 million (2019), 30.79 million (2021), 52.17 million (2022)
Service provider
• Electricity	La Union Electric Cooperative (LUELCO)
Time zone	UTC+8 (PST)
ZIP code	2502
PSGC	013309000
IDD : area code	+63 (0)72
Native languages	Ilocano Pangasinan Tagalog
Website	www.caba.gov.ph

Caba, officially the Municipality of Caba (Ilocano: Ili ti Caba; Pangasinan: Baley na Caba; Filipino: Bayan ng Caba), is a 4th class municipality in the province of La Union, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 23,119 people.^[3]

Caba was a part of the municipality of Aringay until the late-19th century when it was permanently separated to form its own entity. It has a land area of 4,631 hectares (11,440 acres). ^[5]

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History records show that this municipality used three names interchangeably: Caba, Cava, and Caua. According to a local historian Pedro Manongdo, two tales have persisted on how the town got his name. One group referred to an incident when a Spaniard asked an inhabitant the name of the place. The youth mistook the question as an inquiry to the name of the animal he was herding and answered “Cava.” The repetition of the name ended with Cava and later Caba.

Another story sustained that Caba was the name given by a group of immigrants from barrio Caba, San Carlos, Pangasinan who settled in the community in the later years of the 16th century. In memory of the place where they came from, they named the new settlement CABA.

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Caba was founded as a settlement in 1598 by Augustinian Fathers with Don Agustin dela Cruz as the “first man to rule.” The settlement developed into barangay in 1692 with don Luis Manongdo as the Cabeza de barangay. It became a town in 1783 with Don Domingo Aragon as gobernadorcillo.

Two other historians however have claimed different dates on the founding of Caba as a town. On one hand, Father Jose Braganza, SVD claims that Caba was founded in 1745 along with Aringay. On the other hand, Julian Martin claims that Caba was founded in 1844.

Caba is the birthplace of Diego Silang, the inspiration and the leader of the Ilocos Revolt of 1762-1763. During the Spanish period, Silang established an independent rebel government in Northern Luzon and agitated for reforms in and out of the government. However, Spanish authorities resorted to assassinating him with the help of one of his followers who betrayed him with a shot in his back on May 28, 1763. The assassin's bullet did not however smother the flame of Silang rebellion. His wife Gabriella took the torch of leadership and by her own right, continued the rebellion heroically. Four months later, she was captured by Spanish forces and was executed publicly in Vigan on September 20, 1763, thus ended not only the heroic adventure of the “Ilocandia’s Joan of Arc” but also Silang's revolt.^[6] A predominantly Roman Catholic municipality. In 1997 the Roman Catholic Church Celebrated its 400 years of Christianity basing on church's documents

In 1903, the Philippine commission reorganized the administrative and territorial set-up of municipalities in the country. Due to a meager population of financial difficulties, some smaller municipalities were integrated. Caba was integrated with Aringay while Santo Tomas to Agoo.

In 1907, Executive Order no. 41 was issued which provided that Caba be separated from Aringay. The order took effect on January 1, 1908, thus Caba again became a regular municipality with Francisco Sobredillo as Chief Executive.

Caba, along with the nearby towns of Agoo and Bauang were the first places the Japanese invasion force sought to control during the main effort to capture Luzon at the beginning of World War 2 - now known as the Japanese Invasion of Lingayen Gulf. Capturing the three towns which were connected by a high quality road, but protected on one side by the ocean and the other by the sea, meant that the Japanese forces were easily able to establish a secure beachhead. Once they had done so, they launched attacks against defense forces at San Fernando, La Union and Rosario, La Union, and from there they deployed southwards across the plains of Pangasinan and Tarlac to take Fort Stotsenburg in Pampanga, then Bulacan, and finally Manila.^[7]

The beginning of the 1970s marked a period of turmoil and change in the Philippines because Ferdinand Marcos had used foreign debt to fund too many public works projects as he headed his 1969 reelection campaign,^[8][9] which led to the 1969 Philippine economic crisis and the First Quarter Storm protests.^{[10][11][12] : "43"} La Union residents mostly did not speak up about the economic stresses they were experiencing, but when Marcos declared martial law in 1972, Caba was included with the rest of the country.^[13]

Marcos' efforts to consolidate political power did not get much resistance in the La Union,^[14] including Caba,^[13] and La Union residents mostly did not speak up about the economic stresses they were experiencing.^[13] This was because Marcos took advantage of strong political ties to La Union, and allowed the powerful family factions (which had dominated La Union politics since before the American colonial era) to stay in place.^[14]

After Marcos fled into exile after the civilian-led 1986 People Power revolution, Edgar T. Bacungan was appointed OIC mayor under the new Provisional Revolutionary Government. He was then properly elected into office when the Fifth Philippine Republic was established, serving until 1992.

In 1990, Caba was heavily affected by the 1990 Luzon earthquake.

Caba is located 248 kilometres (154 mi) from Metro Manila and 21 kilometres (13 mi) from San Fernando, the provincial capital.

Caba is politically subdivided into 17 barangays. ^[5] Each barangay consists of puroks and some have sitios.

Population census of Caba

Year	Pop.	±% p.a.
1903	3,967	—
1918	5,860	+2.64%
1939	6,873	+0.76%
1948	7,320	+0.70%
1960	9,517	+2.21%
1970	11,719	+2.10%
1975	13,029	+2.15%
1980	14,114	+1.61%
1990	16,620	+1.65%
1995	18,234	+1.75%
2000	19,565	+1.52%
2007	20,927	+0.93%
2010	21,244	+0.55%
2015	22,039	+0.70%
2020	23,119	+0.95%
Source: Philippine Statistics Authority[16][17][18][19]

In the 2020 census, the population of Caba, La Union, was 23,119 people,^[3] with a density of 500 inhabitants per square kilometre or 1,300 inhabitants per square mile.

Poverty incidence of Caba

5 10 15 20 25 30 2006 29.60 2009 25.23 2012 8.53 2015 7.30 2018 3.11 2021 10.46 Source: Philippine Statistics Authority[21][22][23][24][25][26][27][28]

Just as the national government, the municipal government of Caba, is divided into three branches: executive, legislative, and judiciary. The judicial branch is administered solely by the Supreme Court of the Philippines. The LGUs have control of the executive and legislative branches.

The executive branch is composed of the mayor and the barangay captain for the barangays.Local Government Code of the Philippines, Book III, Department of the Interior and Local Government official website.

The legislative branch is composed of the Sangguniang Bayan (town assembly), Sangguniang Barangay (barangay council), and the Sangguniang Kabataan for the youth sector.

The seat of Government is vested upon the Mayor and other elected officers who hold office at the Caba Town Hall. The Sanguniang Bayan is the center of legislation, stationed in Caba Legislative Building.

Members of the Municipal Council
(2022-2025)^[29]

Position	Name
Congressman	Dante S. Garcia
Governor	Raphaelle Veronica A. Ortega-David
Mayor	Donna R. Crispino
Vice-Mayor	Ronnie P. Mangaser
Councilors	Conrado A. Vito
	Arleen G. Crispino
	Maribel B. Runes
	Igmedio L. Dugenia
	Don Mar P. Dugenia
	Charlyn F. Reyes
	Crisogono D. Hulipas Jr.
	Imelda D. Vallejo

• Sangria is a privately-owned Farm Resort located in Barangay Gana.
• Diego Silang's monument is erected in the middle of the Town Plaza.
• President Elpidio Quirino's stone monument on the other hand was placed at Barangay Gana highway. Quirino taught in Caba as an elementary public school teacher.
• Ripe and green mangoes, Bagoong, Padas, and Alamang are the town's products that are sold install along the Gana roads.
• Bamboo furniture is one of the prime business of the residents.
• Sobredillo barrio: one can find the 56 Mortar (weapon) (bombs, 81 millimeter each of Japanese soldiers, World War II), were unearthed near Mayor Clyde Crispino's house in Barangay Sobredillo including a 1-high old jar, for serving offerings in religious rites.^[30]

Caba holds the records in the "Search for Cleanest and Greenest Municipality in La Union" (4th-5th Class Municipality Category in 2006, 2007 and 2008). It also claimed the Regional Level and National Finalist trophies, for Seal of Good Housekeeping trophies in 2010, including the 2010 Provincial Championship medal in the Search for Best Performing LGU Local Governance Performance Measurement System). Caba celebrates on April 15 to 18, the town fiesta and on June 24, the Feast of Saint John the Baptist.

• Caba holds its Paskua Ti Umili every December.^[20]

Caba prime beaches are located along Lingayen Gulf in La Union.

• Caba's prime tourist spot is Villa Navarro Beach Resort and Restaurant (along Lingayen Gulf in Caba, 247 kilometers north of Manila and 10 km north of Agoo, La Union).^[31]
• Sea of Dreams Spa Resort (San Carlos).^[32]
• Paiko Blue Waters Beach Resort and Spa is another Caba's^[33]

• Maglaya Medical-Legal Missions Inc We Care Clinic (MMLM)
• Caba Medicare Community Hospital
• Caba Municipal Health Center

• Caba Central Elementary School
• Dona Antonia Maglaya Elementary School
• Jesus Cares Christian Academy (formerly Faith Mission Academy, Incorporated)
• Labbon Elementary School
• Liquicia Integrated School
• San Carlos Elementary School
• San Cornelio Elementary School
• San Gregorio Elementary School
• San Jose Elementary School
• Santiago Sur Integrated School
• St. John the Baptist Learning Center
• Wenceslao Elementary School

• Caba National High School
• International World Mission School (formerly Remnant Int'l School)
• La Union Standard Academy
• Saint John the Baptist Learning Center
• San Gregorio National High School
• San Jose National High School
• Wenceslao National High School
• Liquicia Integrated School
• Santiago Sur Integrated School

• Messengers of the Cross Bible College

• 
  Caba welcome arch
• 
  Municipal hall
• 
  Farmers' Market Building
• 
  Saint John the Baptist Parish Church
• 
  Caba rural landscape

• Caba Website
• Local Government of Caba
• Philippine Standard Geographic Code
• Philippine Census Information
• Local Governance Performance Management System