Cojuangco endorses Arenas, Abono for Senate, Party-List's 2016 Run

By Mortz C. Ortigoza

MALASIQUI – A gubernatorial aspirant in the 2.8 million populated province’s Pangasinan endorses former Congresswoman Rachel Arenas and three nominees of Abono Party-List (APL) for their election in the Senate and House of Representatives.

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“Matagal ng  walang senador na galing sa Pangasinan. Suportahan natin si dating Congresswoman Rachel Arenas,” former Representative Mark Cojuangco (5th District, Pangasinan) told municipal officials here.
Arenas, member of the Board of Governors of the Philippine Red Cross, has been ubiquitous in different places of the country.
Her presence there spawned rumour that she had a moist eye for a senatorial seat in the Liberal Party her party when she was a congresswoman of the 3rd District of Pangasinan.
Cojuangco also lauded the pro-farmers’ advocacy of the Abono Party-List under the chairmanship of Engineer Rosendo So.
He exhorted the village chiefs and council members of the vote rich 73 villages’ town to vote for the three nominees of the party in the 2016 polls.
“Dalawa po ang kanilang kongresista at ang karamihan po ng tulong na binibigay ng dalawang kongresista iyong dito po sa lalawigan ng Pangasinan”.
The Party-List is represented in the 16th Congress by Representatives Conrado Estrella III and Francisco Emmanuel Ortega III.
Abono in the 2013 polls got  753,161 votes. With just several votes it would be entitled with three congressional nominess. Abono is rumoured to field Pangasinan Vice Governor  Ferdinand Calimlim, a member of Cojuangco’s Nationalist People’s Coalition, as its third nominee.
Cojuangco said with three congressmen under the Party voted into office, Pangasinan would be enjoying the support of nine solons who would give their funds and projects to Pangasinan.
Cojuangco cited how APL uplifted the purchasing powers of the farmers through a higher price of palay.

CONGRESSIONAL ENDORSEMENT. Former Pangasinan Congressman Mark Cojuangco exhorted the village officials of the 73 barangays’ Malasiqui town to support former Representative Maria Rachel Arenas (3rd District, Pangasinan) and the three congressional nominees for Abono-Party-List on their run for the Senate and House of Representatives in the 2016 election. (MORTZ C. ORTIGOZA)

“Doon po sa bayan namin sa Villasis sa Quinto Distrito ng Pangasinan apat na libo na ektaryang palay na sinasaka po doon. Ang average ani po namin doon 4.2 tons (4,200 kilos) per hectare per crop (season), nakaka-dalawang kalahati crop kami doon dahil may patubig doon sa bayan ng Villasis. 4000 hectares times 4.2 tons bawat ani times 16,800 tons times 2.5 beses kada taon for one year 42, 000 tons palay, 42 million kilos na palay”.
He said before Abono came into the picture the per kilo was P14 or P588, 000 in a once a year harvest in the Eastern Pangasinan town.
He said because of the pro active roles of APL the price of palay spikes to P22 a kilo.
“Sabihin na lang natin po umakyat hanggang P18 a kilo, may diperensiya na P4 bawat kilo ang presyo ng palay from P588 million umakyat po ng P756 million may karagdagang P168 million ang halaga ng ani ng Villasis, deretso po iyan sa bulsa ng magsasaka ng Villasis”.
He said one could just imagine the revenues that farmers in the 47 cities and towns' Pangasinan as quantified on the earning of the farmers in Villasis have been earning lately because of the intercession of Abono.
Farmers, he cited, should be thankful to Abono on its pro active roles in charging in courts smugglers and pressuring officials of government’s departments and agencies to prevent smuggling and corruption that undermine the welfare’s of the farmers.