Pola, Oriental Mindoro

Pola, officially the Municipality of Pola (Tagalog: Bayan ng Pola), is a municipality in the province of Oriental Mindoro, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 35,455 people.^[6] It is 74 kilometres (46 mi) from Calapan.

Pola
Municipality
Municipality of Pola
Flag Seal
Map of Oriental Mindoro with Pola highlighted
OpenStreetMap
Pola Location within the Philippines
Coordinates: 13°08′38″N 121°26′24″E
Country	Philippines
Region	Mimaropa
Province	Oriental Mindoro
District	1st district
Founded	January 1, 1912[1]
Barangays	23 (see Barangays)
Government  [2]
• Type	Sangguniang Bayan
• Mayor	Jennifer M. Cruz (NUP)
• Vice Mayor	Marvin T. Rivera (PDP-Laban)
• Representative	Arnan C. Panaligan (Mindoro Bago Sarili)
• Electorate	23,444 voters (2025)
Area [3]
• Total	159.34 km2 (61.52 sq mi)
Elevation	70 m (230 ft)
Highest elevation	487 m (1,598 ft)
Lowest elevation	0 m (0 ft)
Population  (2024 census)[4]
• Total	35,771
• Density	220/km2 (580/sq mi)
• Households	8,965
Economy
• Income class	3rd municipal income class
• Poverty incidence	18.13 % (2021)[5]
• Revenue	₱ 196.4 million (2022)
• Assets	₱ 701.4 million (2022)
• Expenditure	₱ 130.7 million (2022)
• Liabilities	₱ 106.7 million (2022)
Service provider
• Electricity	Oriental Mindoro Electric Cooperative (ORMECO)
Time zone	UTC+8 (PST)
ZIP code	5206
PSGC	1705210000
IDD : area code	+63 (0)43
Native languages	Tadyawan Tagalog

Pola is known as the birthplace of former vice president and veteran news anchor Noli de Castro and actor and former Oriental Mindoro vice governor Ejay Falcon.

Etymology

Its name was derived from the color of the soil in the locality, which is reddish clay. In Tagalog, this is called "pula". This name persisted until the Spaniards arrived and embraced it as the name of the town. The Poblacion is located at the estuary of the Casiligan River, surrounded by abundant green mountain ranges and rocky hills to the west, Hence, the people are given a conducive refuge for agriculture, fishing, and nipa weaving.^[7]

History

Oil spill

The town recently gained national attention because of an oil spill that occurred on February 28, 2023, after the MT Princess Empress sank off the coast of neighboring town Naujan; Pola is one of the worst affected municipalities by the oil spill.

Geography

Barangays

Pola is politically subdivided into 23 barangays. Each barangay consists of puroks and some have sitios.

• Bacauan
• Bacungan
• Batuhan
• Bayanan
• Biga
• Buhay na Tubig
• Calubasanhon
• Calima
• Casiligan
• Malibago
• Maluanluan
• Matulatula
• Pahilahan
• Panikihan
• Zone I (Poblacion)
• Zone II (Poblacion)
• Pula
• Puting Cacao
• Tagbakin
• Tagumpay
• Tiguihan
• Campamento
• Misong

Climate

Climate data for Pola, Oriental Mindoro
Month	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Year
Mean daily maximum °C (°F)	26 (79)	28 (82)	29 (84)	31 (88)	31 (88)	30 (86)	29 (84)	29 (84)	29 (84)	29 (84)	28 (82)	27 (81)	29 (84)
Mean daily minimum °C (°F)	22 (72)	22 (72)	22 (72)	23 (73)	25 (77)	25 (77)	25 (77)	25 (77)	25 (77)	24 (75)	23 (73)	23 (73)	24 (75)
Average precipitation mm (inches)	115 (4.5)	66 (2.6)	55 (2.2)	39 (1.5)	164 (6.5)	282 (11.1)	326 (12.8)	317 (12.5)	318 (12.5)	192 (7.6)	119 (4.7)	173 (6.8)	2,166 (85.3)
Average rainy days	13.6	9.4	10.4	10.5	21.1	26.0	29.0	27.6	27.5	23.1	16.7	16.1	231
Source: Meteoblue[8]

Demographics

Population census of Pola

Year	Pop.	±% p.a.
1903	1,650	—
1918	4,307	+6.61%
1939	10,107	+4.15%
1948	12,612	+2.49%
1960	21,884	+4.70%
1970	18,789	−1.51%
1975	19,072	+0.30%
1980	23,188	+3.98%
1990	26,833	+1.47%
1995	29,156	+1.57%
2000	31,938	+1.97%
2007	32,635	+0.30%
2010	32,984	+0.39%
2015	34,701	+0.97%
2020	35,455	+0.45%
2024	35,771	+0.21%
Source: Philippine Statistics Authority[9][10][11][12][13]

Economy

Poverty incidence of Pola

10 20 30 40 50 60 70 2000 68.07 2003 55.63 2006 41.90 2009 37.93 2012 29.16 2015 18.33 2018 14.88 2021 18.13 Source: Philippine Statistics Authority[14][15][16][17][18][19][20][21]

Notable people

• Noli De Castro – journalist, news anchor, 12th Vice-President of the Philippines (2004-2010)
• Ejay Falcon – Pinoy Big Brother: Teen Edition Plus big winner, actor, and Oriental Mindoro vice-governor