Solon extorts mayor for jueteng payola

By MORTZ C. ORTIGOZA

An official of Urdaneta City said that despite the “Bagsakan” Market in Villasis that competes with the entrepot of the former, the one in Villasis has still a long way to go.

“Their vegetables there are expensive compared to us,” he stressed.

He said that buyers still mass in the Carabao City because of countless of options the city offers.

He explained that in case the Tarlac-Pangasinan Express Way (TPLEX) becomes operational; vehicles would by-pass Villasis that would seal the end of the “Bagsakan” there.

He said Urdaneta City will burgeon as the city hosts the access road of TPLEX where he singled out that commuters from Eastern and Central Pangasinan who use the Bayambang and Camiling roads would shun them and use the more accessible and faster path of the TPLEX through Urdaneta in going to Manila.

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Somebody told me that a member of the House of Representatives succeeded in stopping the illegal numbers game jueteng in a certain town for several months.

But the lawmaker did not stop it because the game is illegal.

The Representative stopped it as a quid pro quo (“What for what” in Latin) for the mayor there to give the former P300 thousand a month.

“The solon gets P1.5 million a month in the district during the lawmaker’s 1st term as member of the House”.

Jueteng in the town is now sluggish after two maintainers run the number game.

The other one, according to my source, did not share a percentage to the mayor everyday.

“Masyadong malakas sa Region ang maintainer!” my source quipped.

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Dagupan City administrator Vlad Mata agreed to my previous column “Poor Dagupan, Laoag and Urdaneta have left her” (You can access it at http://northwatch.wordpress.com/2012/01/20/ortigoza-poor-dagupan-laoag-and-urdaneta-have-left-her/).

He cited the following reasons why the two cities left Dagupan holding the proverbial empty “bayong” (bag).

Firstly, Dagupan should amend her Revenue Code (RC) every three (3) years. He explained that the last time the Bangus City “touched” the Code was in 2004.

He said the three years amendatory period is not only listed on the RC but is included on the memorandum of the  Bureau of Local Government Finance of the Department of Budget & Management “that S.P (Sangguniang Panglungsod) approves the Revenue Code”.

He said the wisdom for an amended RC is for the city to catch-up with the skyrocketing prices of goods and services the city extends to Dagupenos as public services.

Secondly, the city should be aggressive in the collection of taxes.

“Kaya nga inuumpisahan nating habulin iyong mga hindi nagbabayad ng buwis. Saka pangalawa iyong mga nag-mi-misdeclare ng kanilang gross revenues,” the former activist in the University of the Philippines stressed.

Administrator Mata, a former city dad, took a snipe at the members of the SP: “Ito siyempre  sa SP. Ang ating pinaguusapan P581 million, iyong ibang cities na malapit sa atin P650 million, P700 million, P800 million (appropriation a year). Ang Baguio City is about a billion of pesos na ang pinag-uusapan. Samantala tayo P581 million, tapos nag-aaway pa tayo!”.

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Oh by the way, Urdaneta City Mayor Amadeo Gregorio “Bobom” E. Perez IV corrected me on my ““Poor Dagupan, Laoag and Urdaneta have left her”.

He said what City Councilor Jennilyn Sison told me that Urdaneta City College (Bobom’s Goose that lays the golden egg), does not give P25 million a year to the coffer of the Carabao City but churns out a staggering P170 million a year net income to the city’s treasury.

“You ask Budget Officer Gloria Mondares to further confirm my figure.”

A bubbling Mondares confirmed affirmatively when the mayor called her to tell me the real figure.

“Siyempre, paano hindi kami mag na number one dito sa Urdaneta, magaling kasi kami!” she beamingly but jestingly told me.

Susmariosep again, does Mondares insinuates we Dagupenos are not magaling (smart)?

 Our public officials in Dagupan City should treat Mondares words a wake –up call.

Her statement should be a comeuppance to you folks. You can shipped out, or shape up in “Who’s who” of cities in Region 1.

Tsk, tsk. Poor Dagupan because of the “internecine warfare” we did not only fall in the number games but fell on social service. (You can read my selected intriguing but thought-provoking columns at http://mortzortigoza.blogspot.com. You can send comments too at totomortz@yahoo.com).

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