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Municipal/City/Provincial Profiles

 The municipality of Kabasalan, Zamboanga Sibugay has its humble beginning from just a cluster of Subanen houses scattered throughout the area and more dominant on what is now Poblacion Kabasalan.  The native's main economic activity then, was farming, fishing and hunting.

    The Subanen were the first inhabitants of the place when the municpality was dominantly covered with big trees, jungles and mangroves and the habitat of wild life and of wild flowers. Nobody knows from where the Subanen came from before inhabiting Kabasalan.  There are two legends, both at which carry weight up to the present of how the place got its name.  The first legend was when that place was being explored by the Americans, the place was surveyed for plantation of abaca and rubber in the first quarter of the 20th century.  The place was already inhabited by the Maguindanao along the coastal areas and by the Subanen on the upland portion.  Upon the arrival of the first American explorers in the place where the Philippine Rubber Project Company is now located, one of the explorers/surveyors accosted one of the native and asked him the name of the place pointing to the plants growing abundantly in front of them and wanted to know its name, answered that is "Babasal" or red squash. The explorer noted the word Babasal as the name of the place.  As the plantation took its roots with recruited workers from the Visayas and Luzon, the name of the place has gone changes.The Cebuano called the place as "Kabasalan". The prefix "ka" in Cebuano means "the place of".  Thus the Cebuano dialect as the place of the red squash metamorphosed "Babasal" into  "Kabasalan". the second legend has something to do with the weather. The place was being noted for its very high rainfall, even to this day.  The place has no dry months. High peaks surround it in the northern portion and the mangroves along the Sibuguey Bay on the southern portion, the place was noted for its being wet throughout the year.

   To the Cebuano, wet is "Basa". Some "Kabasaan" or the place that is always wet called Kabasalan. Later, the people agreed  to call the place as Kabasalan as the name of the place, which was carried unto the present.  The truth of the proceeding legend or the tale is now lost in the abyss of history and only time knows the truth.

    Kabasalan was created into a municipal district, a political entity, on July 12, 1917 by Governor Frank Carpenter per Executive Order No. 16, series of 1917.  The district then comprises the area from Tayong, then following the south boundary of Bangaan which is now part of Tungawan to the boundary of Panganuran which is now part of Labason Municipality of Zamboanga del Norte, thence along the watershed to the point due north of Mount Tres Reyes which is now part of Alicia; thence southeast of Talaid point passing around the head water of Lutiman which is now part of Alicia; thence along the coast to the starting point including all islands.  The districts comprise the barrios of Kabasalan, Labuan Sur (Tungawan), Sanito (Ipil), Gubawang, Kalintana and Tandu-Buay (all of the present town of Naga),  Titay, Culasian (Payao), Lumarao (Subanipa) and Siay.  The first seat of the local government was in Naga.

   On February 17, 1937, Kabasalan was created into a regular municipality with Honorable Gregorio Cainglet, Sr. as the first Mayor appointed by President Manuel L. Quezon.  In 1939, Mayor Cainglet transferred the seat of the Local Government of Kabasalan.

   Since then, the Municipal Government of Kabasalan has been served and managed by the local Chief Executives as follows, to wit:

        The present directory of Local Government Officials of Kabasalan are as follows, to wit:

The NSCB Regional Unit IX office is located at
 NZUE Bldg. Room 310, Tomas Claudio St., Zamboanga City

Email to: nscb09@gmail.com
 Tel. No. (062) 991-2243

Updated 01/13/2010