Nanay Baby, Top Newsmaker

AS LOCAL government officials come near to celebrating their one year in office, their outstanding achievements are dramatized in news reports. Some have more headline stories than the others.

While accomplishments in social services, including health, education, and livelihood assistance projects can be quantified, Pampanga Governor Lilia Pineda's singular performance in revenue generation is unparalleled. That makes her unbeatable in that field.

She remains the province's top celebrity as newspaper readers can observe. Sanggunian and town officials gravitate around - in fact cling to her - during her official activities to share light from her high-profile routine.

In truth, even her minor activities are "over-covered" which in propaganda parlance is over-kill. This is what movie stars and icons in performing arts avoid - overexposure.

Absence makes the heart grow fonder will aptly apply to a periodic "missing" Governadora. Her tactical non-appearance in news pages will make for dramatic effect in the wisdom of Homer: "Achilles absent, was Achilles still." Nanay Baby, without the ubiquitous photos, will always remain the "Mother of Perpetual Help."

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Angeles City Mayor Edpam has the advantage of a good press, congratulations, Mr. Deo Sambilay. Deo is all over the media outlets tirelessly trumpeting the mayor and minor victories of the Mayor.

Angeleños have been initially impressed by the enormous improvement in the city's traffic condition, his solution to the pestering garbage disposal problem as well as in settling the city debts to the power company.

While City Hall has prepared lavishly for the June 12 Independence Day observance and the commemoration of the Pinatubo eruption, the series of public activities and programmes are actually a celebration of the mayor's triumph over an electoral protest filed by former mayor Blueboy Nepo, it was gathered from inside sources.

Edpam using a Segway had led local cyclists, for example, in a city-wide bikathon dubbed "Padyak sa Pagbangon."

Pagbangon means rising up which in turn connotes his final victory over Blueboy in the Commission on Elections proceedings.

Blueboy Nepo, at a future time, has his own program for "Pagbangon". "Blueboy, mibangon ka!" was the advice of his leaders and concerned residents, urging him to rise up like Lazarus and make active efforts to regain his lost leadership.

If figures do not lie, Blueboy has barely three years to catch up with Edpam who tallied over 36,000-votes margin in a Comelec count over the three-term congressman. A Pagbangon agenda for Nepomuceno will target some 12,000 new adherents or Nepo votes each year until the next polls.

By all indications Edpam would not allow Blueboy to get 36,000 votes in 2013. Edpam wants to sustain and maintain his incredible lead in reality, as well as symbolically, like his one-kilometer fun run which he called "Takbo para sa Tagumpay." Of course he has set his reelection in 2013. He believes in the Chinese adage that the longest journey starts with the first {bamboo) bicycle ride.

Even as Blueboy keeps a low profile stance after the elections, it does not mean that he has stopped what he keeps doing best - repairing his old political machine that had suffered damages under Edpam's Agyu Tamu onslaught. Blueboy's personality assumes the characteristics of Pinatubo. He could be quiet, dormant, and appears sleeping. But it is capable of destructive eruptions and explosive surprises, albeit periodically, and 2013 is less than 500 years away.

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Angeles City taipan Ricardo Tan, owner of the popular Jenra Mall chain in this city and Mabalacat, has chosen the City of San Fernando as his next site for his fourth Jenra Mall project.

Tan told newsmen that he has trust and confidence in the Rodriquez administration in promoting and protecting new investments in his city.
The new Jenra Mall is located at a 3-hectare prime lot in Sindalan, along MacArthur Highway. It is expected to be completed before the year ends, according to mall manager Eddie Tan.

Mayor Oca was visibly overjoyed when Ric Tan offered the city mayor a free land site for a future City Hall location of San Fernando. Oca replied he has already the Heroes Park as the alternative locus. Tan has donated the land site of the City Hall of Angeles.

Ric Tan who came to Angeles City in 1947 as an immigrant from Fujian, China, engaged in small retail businesses, which gradually evolved into big grocery stores. Now his undertaking had become giant malls.

Known for his philanthropy and the Chinese virtue corresponding to corporate social responsibility, the Tan family also invested in improving medical services in Pampanga. Their Sacred Heart Hospital in Angeles City is the leading institution in specialized treatment of cancer and cardio-vascular diseases in Region 3.

Tan was impressed by Rodriguez's reputation in good governance, top of which is his program for inducing investment and capital to the city.
After the ground breaking rites, Mayor Oca briefed the Tan family and their partners in the new socio-economic profile of San Fernando, giving them studied statistics on the local economy, and the general upgrade of the Fernandinos' quality of life after his nearly 8 years as city mayor.

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Fortuitous events culminated in the reinstatement of San Fernando city assessor Joey de Leon to his previous position. A technical legality had broken his service record in the city. Now he is back to assume his sensitive position as evaluator of real property and enforcer of the new real estate tax ordinance.

In biblical times, before Christ started his active ministry, his coming was presaged by John the Baptist.

Is Joey de Leon, the "John" of former mayor Rey Aquino, now PhilHealth chief, whose return to active "ministry" in the 2013 polls has been predicated by local seers?

Assessor de Leon was reported to have expressed his willingness to cooperate (play ball?) with Mayor Oca to preserve their peace. Wait until a local Salome starts dancing and heads would start rolling as a consequence. Of course Dr. Rey, like Kumander Jasmine, his old nemesis, carries his own kampuput scent and a lot of life-extending PhilHealth cards.