Women power at Capitol

THE landscape of the Pampanga Provincial Government in terms of the officials there has never been without women power. But never has it been as pronounced as it is now in this term.

We have a lady governor, Lilia Pineda, whose boundless energy and generosity brings her, almost on a daily basis, to places -- inspecting hospitals, visiting landslide victims, hearing the woes of patients, vendors, cultural communities, committing her assistance to them and on the spot, giving them money for their immediate needs.

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When she is not out there in the field, she receives numerous callers, various groups –from Capitol employees, to judges of the regional trial court, members of Quota International, senior citizens’ organization, officials and students of an aeronautics school, media people, provincial board members, mayors and other local officials, and ordinary folks. This is why her office is usually a busy place of sounds and sights.

Not many people, not even the men sometimes, would willingly go through such a grueling schedule. But our women officials at the Capitol appear to have the will, the desire and the energy to go through this in the name of genuine public service.

Maybe with the governor’s good example, the vice governor and board members can be seen in many such occasions, actively involving themselves in matters of the province. Particularly noteworthy, however, is the attendance of the lady board members in such activities.

A veteran in Pampanga’s public service arena is Board Member Edna David. Having served for decades as an elected official of the province has not lessened her zest for doing things for her constituents. She attends Sangguniang Panlalawigan sessions regularly, lends her voice to issues needing clarification and resolution. The years of productive service could very well serve as her legacy to Kapampangans, make them remember her having served them well. But no, she would not rest on her laurels; rather, she’d go on doing her share as board member and public servant to her people.

Now on to the lady first termers – Monina “Monz” Laus and Trina Tiglao Dizon. They are almost always part of the governor’s party wherever she goes. Immersing themselves in her concerns for the people and doing their part as legislators of their district, in their case District 3.

BM Monz, as she is fondly called, may be on her first term in an elective post but she is no neophyte in the area of public service. Her exposure to it was all of the 24 years that her late husband, BM Ceferino “Pinong” Laus, was an elected official of the City of San Fernando, and then the province. Her own involvement in socio-civic activities and her being an officer of Quota International were very good training grounds for her eventual foray into public service.

“It is not really new to me so there is no great adjustment to be made on my part,” Laus said. She chairs the Committees on Health and Trade and Industry.

“Being a housewife and mother who is concerned about the health of my family makes me appropriate for the Health Committee,” she said, after recently attending a seminar on the intervention measures for tuberculosis patients and she claims to having learned so much from the seminar.

She is also an apt chairperson for the Committee on Trade and Industry, as she herself is a businesswoman. Her numerous business concerns serve as a backdrop for her role in the committee. In an initial meeting of the committee which she recently attended, Laus humbly admitted that she has a lot to learn and she is “willing to do so with the members of the committee as her mentors.” She is one local official who may have come in from the cold but actually brings a lot of warmth and substance to her role in public service.

Her late husband, Apung Pinong Laus, had wanted Monz to continue their tradition of serving the people, thus, her running for public office. Tatang, as she fondly calls the old man, must be smiling with approval from heaven as Monz goes about her duties with gusto and commitment.

Board Member Trina Tiglao Dizon’s is a different story. Her initial taste of youthful politics and public service happened in 1996 when she became chairperson of the Sangguniang Kabataan (SK) in her hometown of Mexico. To her then, it was just a time to enjoy with her friends while doing their bit for their community. But things took a more serious turn when she was elected municipal councilor of Mexico in 2001, making it a full three terms till 2010.

Her being elected as board member to the Sangguniang Panlalawigan in the May 2010 elections was a complete surprise to her. “I never imagined I could reach this far since I never consciously planned for it,” referring to her blossoming political career.

In her last term as municipal councilor, she sponsored an ordinance on the Children’s Welfare Code of Mexico. “We tied up with the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (Tesda) in the conduct of seminars and trainings to provide livelihood for the people, especially women,” she quipped.

She also chaired the Human Resource Committee and conducted quarterly job fairs and gave recommendations for their constituents to get hired.

Her involvement in this committee gave her the impetus to insist on the implementation of an already existing ordinance that provided for business firms put up in Mexico to hire at least 60 percent of their manpower from the town’s locals.

“Ours is a stressful but rewarding job, especially when people come up to us and express their appreciation for what we do. All in all, it needs a proper handling of people as we are wont to meet with all types with various concerns,” she narrated.

BM Trina plans to focus on Gender and Development issues in her first term with the SP. She was involved in similar issues during her terms as councilor.

“Findings of a study released through the Social Action Center of Pampanga (SACOP) revealed that Pampanga tops other provinces in cases of sexual abuses among women and minors.” She feels strongly about this, especially as a woman, that she intends to propose an ordinance that would prevent and deal with such case, and maybe put up an office that would handle gender and development-related cases.

The power of the women at the Capitol has just started to be felt in the first two months of the Pineda administration. Their term of office just begun, and much more can be expected from them as they progress into it. While there is no intent to diminish the efforts of their male counterparts, it is a known fact that when women commit to something, they give their whole heart to it and work hard at it until they are satisfied with the results. The beneficiaries will ultimately be the people that they serve, their constituents in Pampanga. (Eloisa P. Galang/Pampanga PIO)