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[ PRESIDENTIAL DECREE NO. 268, August 04, 1973 ]

SPLITTING REGION 4 INTO REGION 4 AND REGION 4-A, THUS MAKING TWELVE REGIONS INSTEAD OF ONLY ELEVEN REGIONS FOR THE BUREAU OF POSTS AND INCLUDING THE PROVINCE OF BULACAN IN REGION 4.

WHEREAS, the Integrated Reorganization Plan, as approved, provides for the establishment of a uniform number of eleven regions for all the departments, bureaus, and agencies of the National Government;

WHEREAS, insofar as the Bureau of Posts is concerned, Region 4, known as the Southern Tagalog Region, comprising the provinces of Rizal, Cavite, Laguna, Batangas, Quezon, Aurora (sub-province), Marinduque, Oriental Mindoro, Occidental Mindoro, Romblon, and Palawan and the cities of Manila, Pasay, Quezon, San Pablo, Lipa, Batangas. Caloocan, Cavite, Tagaytay, Trece Martires and Puerto Princesa, with regional center at Greater Manila, is too large and extensive and in terms of administrative and operational requirements, and volume of postal business and transactions, is comparatively four times bigger than any of the other ten regions;

WHEREAS, under the current setup of the Bureau of Posts, Region 4 comprising the above-mentioned provinces and cities, including the province of Bulacan, which is a part of Region 3 under the Integrated Reorganization Plan, has been split into two, Region 4 comprising the provinces of Bulacan, Rizal, Cavite, Romblon and Palawan, and the cities of Manila, Caloocan, Pasay, Quezon, Tagaytay, Trece Martires and Puerto Princesa, with regional center at Manila and Region 4-A, comprising the provinces of Laguna, Batangas, Quezon, Aurora (sub-province), Marinduque, Oriental Mindoro, and Occidental Mindoro, and the cities of San Pablo, Batangas, Lipa, and Lucena, with regional center at San Pablo;

WHEREAS, Region No. 4, under the current set-up is the hub of mail operations affecting the entire country because it is in this region, particularly in the city of Manila, where international exchanges of dispatch and receipt of all kinds of foreign mail and parcels are handled as distinguished from the other regions that are confined to the handling of domestic mail only;

WHEREAS, in order to hasten the movement of mail in the present Region 4, pilot operational projects such as the Bulacan Provincial Mail Exchange Service, the Rizal Provincial Mail Exchange Service, the Cavite Provincial Mail Exchange Service, and the Manila Airmail Network are being undertaken, in addition to the clover leaf system of collecting and delivering mail in all the cities and municipalities near Manila; and

WHEREAS, it is necessary to split Region 4 into two, namely, Region 4 and Region 4-A, with corresponding cities and provinces comprising them as heretofore described for a more effective and efficient postal service not only in these two regions but in all the other ten regions;

NOW, THEREFORE, I, FERDINAND E. MARCOS, President of the Philippines, by virtue of the powers in me vested by the Constitution as Commander-in-Chief of all the Armed Forces of the Philippines and pursuant to Proclamation No. 1081, dated September 21, 1972, and General Order No. 1, dated September 22, 1972, as amended, do hereby decree that notwithstanding any provision of the Integrated Reorganization Plan to the contrary, the Bureau of Posts shall be reorganized into twelve (12) regions by splitting
Region 4 as contemplated in the Integrated Reorganization Plan into two:

1) Region 4 to comprise the provinces of Bulacan, which is hereby included in Region 4, Rizal, Cavite, Romblon, and Palawan, and the cities of Manila, Caloocan, Pasay, Quezon, Tagaytay, Trece Martires and Puerto Princesa, with regional center at Manila;

2) Region 4-A shall comprise the provinces of Laguna, Batangas, Quezon, Aurora (sub-province), Marinduque, Oriental Mindoro, Occidental Mindoro and the cities of San Pablo, Batangas, Lipa and Lucena with regional center at San Pablo City.

The necessary additional position for Regional Director, Assistant Regional Director and other personnel to compose the staff of the regional office for said Region 4-A shall be created, subject to requirements by the Commission on Reorganization and approval by the Office of the President of the staffing pattern therefor: Provided, further, That said Regional Director of Region 4-A shall have full powers and authority as any other regional director: And provided, finally ,That both Regional Directors for Region 4 and Region 4-A shall be under the same PROD.

Done in the City of Manila, this 4th day of August, in the year of Our Lord, nineteen hundred and seventy-three.

			(Sgd.) FERDINAND E. MARCOS President Republic of the Philippines
	By the President:
	(Sgd.) ROBERTO V. REYES
		Assistant Executive Secretary