BEAT DRUGS; FIX ROADS
CAMPAIGN PROMISES
Candidates for governor Rep. Gwen Garcia (Cebu, 3rd) and Vice. Gov. Agnes Magpale bare their plans for the province if they win the election on May 13. They also pointed out what each failed to accomplish during their stint in Capitol
UNITING town and city mayors to address problems on traffic, waste water and illegal drugs is what Rep. Gwen Garcia (Cebu, 3rd) promised to do if elected governor, while Vice Gov. Agnes Magpale promised road projects, good governance and transparency in Capitol if she wins.
The first day of the campaign period saw the opposing candidates for Cebu governor and their running mates wooing voters in the towns—Garcia in the south with Daphne Salimbangon and Magpale in the north with Gov. Hilario Davide III.
“We need to get all the mayors together and understand our common problems. There needs to be a leader who will be able to get everybody on board because our borders are artificial. Borderless ang problema nato sa traffic, drainage, waste water, even drugs and terrorism,” Garcia said in an interview during her party’s campaign caravan on Friday, March 29.
During her stint as governor, Garcia said she used to sit with local chief executives during the Metro Cebu Development and Coordinating Board meetings to discuss their concerns. She intends to continue doing so if she is elected on May 13.
“It was during our time when we defined Metro Cebu, and we extended that in the south to as far as Carcar (City) and sa north, as far as Danao (City). Perhaps now, we need to redefine that again, revisit the definition because more and more, the greater part of the cities and towns that are closer to Cebu City have become urbanized,” she continued.
Garcia also stressed the need for a mass transport system, especially for those working in Cebu City but residing in the neighboring cities and towns, and for a more intense fight against illegal drugs.
“The President (Rodrigo Duterte) has already called Cebu number one in drugs. We have to be very serious. During my time, I waged an all-out war against drugs and got everybody on board... I guess no right-minded official would want drugs to proliferate,” she said.
Garcia lamented that the Cebu Provincial Detention and Rehabilitation Center, which used to be a tourist destination and was internationally recognized for its dancing inmates, is now “a hotbed, a haven for shabu.”
Aside from these, Garcia also wants to reintroduce programs she had implemented during her stint as governor, such as the distribution of free school supplies to public school students, and road asphalting projects in farflung areas, among others.
One Cebu kicked off their southern Cebu campaign caravan in Argao, the hometown of Davide, Garcia’s political nemesis.
The activity started with a holy mass at the Archdiocesan Shrine of St. Michael the Archangel, and was followed by a short hand-raising event for the party’s local slate in Argao.
Garcia and Salimbangon were joined by senatorial candidate Ramon “Bong” Revilla Jr. as they visited and met with their local candidates from the towns in the first, second, sixth and seventh congressional districts.
Campaign trail
In the north, the campaign brought Magpale and Davide to 11 towns where they saw for themselves the “poor” state of the provincial roads.
Magpale promised to fix these roads and open an alternate route to and from northern Cebu if she is elected governor.
While it’s true that these roads were fixed by Garcia when she was governor, she lamented that the work only involved asphalt overlay.
“But the base preparation was poor, so the condition of the roads now is really poor,” Magpale said in Bisaya.
Magpale is running for governor under the Barug Alang sa Kauswagan ug Demokrasya (Bakud) party-National People’s Coalition (NPC), while Davide is running under the Liberal Party.
Magpale and Davide started the campaign with a mass at the Sto. Tomas de Villanueva Parish in Danao City before leading a caravan to San Remigio, passing by the towns of Compostela, Carmen, Catmon, Sogod, Borbon, Tabogon, Bogo City, Medellin and Daanbantayan.
For Magpale, their start in Danao City in the fifth district was historical. Thirty-seven years ago, she became the city’s vice mayor at the age of 27.
Because of the solid support of their political allies, Magpale now counts four of the seven districts—second, fourth, fifth and seventh—as their bailiwick.
The fifth district is known to be a stronghold of the Durano clan and the Bakud party, which is allied with the NPC.
With the support of Bogo City Mayor Celestino Martinez Jr., Magpale said they are also strong in the fourth district.
The Calderons in the seventh district and the support of six of the seven incumbent mayors of the second district will help their tandem win in those areas as well, she said.
The six mayors are Alcoy Mayor Michael Angelo Sestoso, Argao Mayor Stanley Caminero, Boljoon Mayor Merlou Derama, Mayor Jose Tumulak Jr., Mayor Emerito Calderon and Santander Mayor Marilyn Wenceslao.
Dalaguete Mayor Ronald Allan Cesante, the second congressional district candidate, is a member of the One Cebu party of Garcia.
Even if the Gullases in the first district are allied with One Cebu, Magpale said the voters there are educated enough to know the issues against Garcia, including the alleged anomalous purchase of the Balili property and the Cebu International Convention Center.
Magpale said the battleground would be the third and sixth districts.
During their tour of the province, Magpale said they want to emphasize their advocacies on good governance and transparency and their stand against graft and corruption.
“These should be heard by the barangays. That’s our strength, our clean record,” Magpale said.
She reported that through her partnership with Davide, the Province was able to construct 74 school buildings and purchase 347 mini dump trucks and multicabs.
They also upgraded four provincial hospitals in the cities of Carcar, Danao and Bogo and in Balamban. They hired 56 doctors without going to manpower agencies, Magpale said.
Meanwhile, Magpale assured the public that even if they are campaigning, they would not abandon their official duties as incumbent officials.
“It’s really going to be tough. We have to campaign, but we have to do our jobs. We cannot just leave Capitol. So it will be quite hectic,” she said.