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The façade of the biggest mall in the Bangsamoro Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) located in Cotabato opened stores today, April 2, 2025. (Photo from Maguindanao Information Committee) COTABATO CITY — Hundreds of mall goers stormed the newly opened KCC Mall of Cotabato as residents in this city and from nearby provinces are thrilled to experience shopping in the gigantic mall seen as a symbol of progress, growth, and new opportunities for the city and the Bangsamoro region. Several Philippine Marine troops in full battle gear had to reinforce the private security guards to pacify the over-excited mall goers to prevent a stampede and untoward incident.
The Koronadal Commercial Corporation (KCC) Mall of Cotabato opened at 9 a.m., but mall-goers from the city and those from Maguindanao del Norte, Maguindanao del Sur, and Cotabato provinces were already queuing as early as 5 a.
m. wanting to experience a whole new level of shopping, dining, and entertainment. “I would like to avail of the bonus (discount) cards the mall would give to the first 100 customers, that is why I came early,” Bai Intan Sultan, a shopper from nearby Sultan Kudarat town in Maguindanao del Norte, said in the vernacular.
Excited mallgoers troop to the newly opened KCC Mall of Cotabato wanting to experience a whole new level of shopping, dining, and entertainment. Private security guards, backed by Philippine Marine troopers, try to regulate the crowd and prevent a stampede during the mall opening on April 2, 2025. (Photo courtesy of DXMS Radyo Bida) While security guards and Marines were trying to control the crowd from becoming unruly as the mall was set to open a few minutes away, the mall goers were chanting “Duterte!, Duterte!” The multi-billion peso mall, built by China Construction Third Engineering and 21st Construction Development Company Consortium, is located in a 19-hectare lot in the heart of Cotabato City.
It has a floor area of 180,000 square meters, the biggest KCC mall chain in Mindanao. It has eight cinemas under construction, a huge supermarket, wide department stores, and multi-level parking areas for customers’ vehicles. Also under construction are an 11-storey modern hotel and state-of-the-art convention center.
“We are bringing 500 tenants from across the country, introducing global retail experiences while ensuring our local entrepreneurs and farmers have a place in our ecosystem,” said Arvin Chan, president of the KCC group of companies. Subscribe to our daily newsletter By providing an email address. I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy Policy .
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