It is an eye-sore and deplorable to see palay being dried at the stretch of the shoulders of the national highway near the municipal hall of Villasis, Pangasinan Many commuters to and from Manila surely wonder about the silence of the local government unit on this matter.
This is not good for your administration Mayor Ditas Abrenica. Is your nonchalance on this “anarchy” in your streets happening because election is already around the corner and those farmers who solar dry there are voters?
***
A provincial board member of Pangasinan told me that every quarter each of them receives P875 thousand or P3,500,000 a year discretionary fund. “Kulang pa nga iyan, dapat dagdagan ni Gob, kasi ubos kaagad sa solicitations and projects like mono block chairs that I give to the baranggays in my district,” he said. But a source at the Capitol told me this Board Member will not win the election next year. “Kung hindi nagpapakita sa mga kapitan niya, he kept promising them about financial aid or project. Iyong iba daw na kapitan niya iyong ibibigay dapat niya hindi daw makakabayad sa pabalik balik nila sa bahay niya”.
Another member of the board does not know that his colleagues have already been back biting him. A board member has warned a colleague not to lend hundred thousands of pesos to him because he is a delinquent borrower.
***
Vice Mayor Cesar M. Manzano of Alaminos City whined in the press that his mayor Hernani Braganza did not give him his two million pesos social discretionary fund (spell: pork barrel) for fiscal year 2012.
A mayor of a town in Central Pangasinan agreed with Braganza: “Kahit ako rin hindi ko siya bibigyan, e threat siya sa akin! (If I am the mayor there I’ll do what Braganza has done, he (Manzano) is a threat!)” Manzano runs for the mayoralty in the next year’s poll against Braganza’s son Lean.
Urdaneta City Mayor Bobom Perez told me at his office lately even during the mayoralty reigned of his father (Amadito now “Ambassador” to Taiwan) they did not give anything beyond the salary and office expenses (staff salary, electricity, etc) of the city’s vice mayor and councilors.
Binalonan young Mayor Mon Mon Guico told me that even Renato ”Butsoy” Legazpi challenged him for the mayoralty and assailed him whenever he barnstorms the boondocks, he still gives his P1.3 million “pork” every year to him. Mon-Mon, a pilot and a crossed of actors Dingdong Dantes and Piolo Pascual, laughed off on the allegation by the camp of Butsoy that he is “Gandang lalaki mahirap hagilapin (a hunk that his constituents could hardly locate).
“I was always here in my office”.
Former Mayors Roy Macanlalay and Lito Zaplan of Calasiao and Sta Barbara told me they regularly give the pork of their vice mayor. Roy qualified however that even though he knew former Vice Mayor Ferdie Galang (my classmate) has moist eyes for the hizzoner’s post against his son Mark Roy (present mayor) he still gave his yearly discretionary funds of almost two million pesos. “What for, he was not even a threat to us”.
Zaplan has no problem with his vice mayor Ray Santos. But told me he still gives the “pork” worth P400 thousand a year to each of the pro-Rey Velasco (a former mayor there who challenged Zaplan in the next year’s election) opposition councilors.
***
Oh, when I met Board Member Bosyong Humilde (1st District, Pangasinan) I asked him if his candidacy, and that of Lean Braganza for mayor in Alaminos City will divide both of their votes from their supporters. He told me if that is the case, then the same could be applied to former congressman Art Celeste and Vice Mayor Manzano who both gun for the same post next year’s poll.
“Their votes would be divided, too”. In 2010 poll, Celeste and Manzano ran for the first and second top posts in the city. But only Manzano made it.
***
I just learned that two of my media colleague Mel Jovillanos (media ward of former Minister Blas Ople and Marcos Minister Kit Tatad and Edwin Bautista (Gezz, my debonair award winning ward when he was under my tutelage in political science subject in a university) run for the vice mayoralty and councillorship, respectively of Pozzurubio town.
Inggat lang kayo Edwin and Mel sabi ni Atong Remogat, baka gawing isyu din sa inyo ang isyu kay Mayor Mon Mon Guico na “Magandang lalaki, mahirap hagilapin”. Atong’s political opponents used that dreaded issue that was responsible for his defeat when he ran for the Barangay chairmanship in 2010 poll.
If Atong had won that poll he would be running under the slate of Mayor Zaplan as councilor. (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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