Kwentong Mayor

Galing Pook Talks Back with Tina

2008-03-18T11:00:00.000+08:00

The four gentlemen guests were impressive and so was the talk host!

During a taping of a special edition of TALK BACK with Tina, Galing Pook Chairperson Governor Lito Coscoculella of Galing Pook, Galing Pook 2007 winners Mayors Jess Robredo of Naga City, Loreto Cabaya of Aleosan, Cotabato and Lacson of San Carlos City were not only physically stunning on their newly cut hairs and colorful barongs and polo shirts; they were also intelligently convincing speakers and advocates of good local governance!

Of course, host Tina dished out evocative questions eliciting insightful responses.

The first question shot by Tina was direct: Why did the 3 programs of the 3 mayors win the Galing Pook 2007?

Well simple:

Mayor Cabaya: 5 mayors in Cotabato banded together to form the PALMA alliance and pooled their equipments, personnel and money and were able to construct 281 Km of farm to market roads at a bewildering cost of 30,000 per km compared to 1 M of DPWH or 1.8 of WB-funded projects! Unbelievable!

Mayor Lacson: San Carlos City is the first LGU to levy 0.75 centavos per cubic meter of water consumed and uses the collected fund to rehabilitate and protect the watershed!

Mayor Robredo: Naga prepares its future leaders by exposing the young in actual executive and legislative operations of the city government!

The next question was directed to Gov Lito: what are the traits and profiles of the 3 mayors or the other mayors and governors who won previous Galing Pook Awards?

“I can think of three: first, they take risks: they implement programs regardless of the consequences; second, they are highly independent and self-reliant: they don’t rely much from national government assistance; and third: they have the political will to do what has to be done.”

Then the sensitive question of corruption: If PALMA can construct 1 km farm to market road at a cost of 30,000 and DPWH at 1M, there must be a “bukol” somewhere. How do you address corruption in government?

The responses from the 4 gentlemen:

Make all govt transactions transparent. Naga City has an i-governance that publishes through the internet all procurements, legislations, budgets and expenses

Let the people be involved. Mayor Cabaya says “When people do the free labor, the LGUs provide the gasoline for the equipments and food for the workers; you minimize the cost of commissions!”

Encourage local traders to bid in government projects because if they win most of the resources will pour in the locality, Mayor Lacson added

Let the local government do the work: they can do better and cheaper!, Gov Lito, adds

Invest in education: the more people are well informed and educated the more they can demand from their leaders transparency accountability and better services

The last of a series of questions of Tina was forward looking: given these outstanding programs of local government units, what should be done?

Mayor Cabaya’s answer was straightforward: prioritize national support to the poor municipalities. We have been forgotten for a long time!

Mayor Lacson: increase the IRA to local government units and LGUs can prove that they are more efficient and effective than national government!

Mayor Jess Robredo: make the distribution of IRA and national wealth more equitable!

The 3 mayors may come from different political parties ( Robredo LP, Cabaya Independent-KAMPI, Lacson NPC) and are on different term status ( Cabaya 2nd term, Lacson last term 1st round, Robredo last term 2nd round) but they all show the passion and the will to make a difference!

Mabuhay po kayong lahat at salamat po kay Tina for being the best talk host in town!

Dok Eddie
Galing Pook
March 13, 2008

Among Ed

2008-01-21T15:44:00.000+08:00

One of the reasons why I finally accepted the invitation to be the Executive Director of Galing Pook Foundation was Among Ed.

When he defeated two giants representing jueteng and corruption in Pampanga politics during the last May 2007 elections for governorship, I was so touched that I felt that after all, against all odds, there is hope for Philippine politics.

Against the background of national pessimism amidst the never-ending corruption, cheating, deception and killings, Among Ed offered hope.

Hope that people without goons, guns and gold can win in an election.

Hope that when people are pushed to the wall, there are people willing to sacrifice and offer an alternative to traditional politics.

Hope that after all, people can rise up and choose or elect moral or good alternative politicians.

Mabuhay ang mga kapampangan!

Among Ed’s first 100 days in office all the more heightened that hope:

• He has collected a whooping 66 M in revenues alone from quarrying fees (5M for 1st 5 days, 29 M for 1st month). This is already equivalent to 3 years of the previous administration’s collection effort! All he did was to charge and collect the right fees and remit them ALL to the treasury. Period. No brainer, but a lot of moral and political will!

• He exposed the 500,000 bribe money from Malacanang. When all those who received and gave money and even those who witnessed the pay-off denied to high heavens, it was Among Ed who had no qualms in revealing the truth. “For truth will set us free.” Telling the truth is a non-virtue in Philippine politics today.

Among Ed is a welcome aberration in Philippine politics, a fresh breeze within the polluted air and a ray of hope for those who have forgotten to believe.

Among Ed for President?

Dok Eddie
November 7, 2007
San Fernando, Pampanga

Si Mayor Bambol

2007-09-05T04:00:00.000+08:00

I always love to go to Tagaytay City to freshen up, to have a deep look at the pristine beauty of the Taal Volcano and Lake and be amazed by the myriads of flowers that abound along the roads.

Today, I happen to be in Tagaytay again.

I just gave a talk to the Department of Health personnel on encouraging local government units to come together and jointly run networks of health facilities (Rural Health Units and hospitals) so as to better improve health outcomes, provide continuity of health services to their constituents and maximize their scarce resources.

Then suddenly, Dr. Rorie told me that I can meet the young mayor of the city, known also as the Garden City, the Character City and a Healthy City.

Dressed in simple polo shirt, fading maong and casual shoes, I call him among the new breed of “MAYORS IN BLUE JEANS”.

” Ang alam ng mga tao na mayor ng Tagaytay City ay si Francis Tolentino, “I blurted. “ ”Hindi ka ba pampalit lang dahil sa last term na ni Francis?”

"Hindi ah, I am my own man!” asserted Mayor “Bambol” Tolentino, the younger brother of Francis, and the son of former Mayor Tolentino. “Before I became a mayor, I was an SK President and a two-term councilor! While I continued my brother’s programs and projects, I have initiated my own programs.”

While Mayor Bambol is still maintaining the Galing Pook awarded programs (People’s Park and financial re-engineering) he is enthusiastic about his new innovations in expanding the financial base of his 3rd class component city. Among his pride are his funeral services of offering caskets/coffins at affordable 5K, 10K and 15K prices to the people. He boasts also of gaining about 30M a year from the new city administered Picnic Groove.

He wants to remove the structures blocking the view of the Taal volcano and the lake and likewise doesn’t want SM and Robinsons to put big malls in the city.

All he wants is just to preserve the pristine nature of the city where people come to view, breathe fresh air, pray, meditate, dine, and buy fresh fruits and flowers.

What the mayor wants is what people living in and visitors going to Tagaytay also want!

Dok Eddie
Galing Pook Foundation
August 30, 2007
Tagaytay City

Mayor Hagedorn

2007-08-31T04:00:00.000+08:00

I first met Mayor Ed Hagedorn way back in 1994 in one of the hallways of the Asian Institute of Management. We were both waiting to be called inside a conference room for a panel interview for the first Galing Pook Awards. This short stocky mestizo mayor struck me right away because of his down to earth frank confession that he used to be a "tarantado and barumbado" before he became mayor.

He and Puerto Princesa is now a Galing Pook Hall of Fame awardee for Bantay Puerto, Oplan Linis, Carabao and Tractor Pool, Satellite Clinics and Libraries. He is now being considered for the Award for Continuing Excellence Award.

I and the GP staff had a recent chat with him and he amazed us with his 2 stories:

1. Jueteng

During the Ramos administration, then DILG Secretary Alunan heard that there was no Jueteng in Puerto Prinsesa. So he asked Mayor Hagedorn if indeed there was no jueteng in his city. The mayor said "yes, sir!". "How did you do it?," inquired the Secretary. "I just stopped it , sir" was the quirk reply of the mayor. "Papano nga?" quick follow-up question by the Secretary. " I just stopped it, sir. I was the one operating it before. So, I just stopped operating jueteng in Puerto Prinsesa!" And so it came to pass that up to this day there is no jueteng in the city.

2. Kaingin

Kaingin or slash burning was rampant in the forests of Purto Prinsesa. In 1992, upon the assumption to office as city mayor by Ed Hagedorn, he ordered kaingin to be stopped. More than 1,000 Kaingeros and their families trooped down to him and told him: " paano na kami Mayor, magugutom kami!". He summoned his budet officer and asked if the city has money. The budget officer said yes but there is no appropriation for the kaingeros. There is a budget item, though, that they can use: teh calamity fund, but there is need for national government to declare a state of calamity first before the city can release the fund. The mayor said that this is an emergency situation and waiting for national government declaration would take months.

Presured by the demand of the kaingeros, the mayor and the sanggunian panglungsod declared a calamity and released funds for the use of the kaingeros in their livelihood projects. A major component of this was the provision of the carabao and tractor pool for these affected kaingeros.
This program soon was awarded a Galing Pook citation and propelled the city to the hall of fame category.

But by declaring calamity on their own, the mayor was charged of graft and corruption in the courts. He reasoned out that even then President Ramos commended him for bringing a stop to kaingin. He soon sought the assistance of then Congresman Golez to sponsor a bill that would empower local government to declare stae of calamities in their areas of jurisdiction. The bill soon was passed and the charges against the mayor was dismissed!

It takes political will to to make things happen. Mayor Hagedorn used political will in stopping both jueteng and kaingin!

Mabuhay ka mayor!