Monday, August 27, 2007 Mongaya: Cebu’s ninth city By Anol Mongaya Panahom
NAGA, the town where I used to spend weekends during my pre-school days with my late father Doroy and grandparents, is now bent on becoming Cebu’s ninth city with the Sept. 2 plebiscite just around the corner.
While Mayor Val Chiong worries about low turnout like the other plebiscites this year in Cebu, I expect Naganhons to come out in full force and show pride in being part of the process of making their beautiful town into a progressive city.
I was there during that fateful Christmas party last December when barangay leaders asked Rep. Eddie Gullas for an explanation why the bill for Naga’s cityhood was shelved. The persuasive congressman, I was sure, groped for words, as the sentiment favoring cityhood was quite strong among barangay leaders.
Fortunately, Congressman Gullas and Mayor Chiong succeeded in pushing for the “photo-finish” passing of the law when the Senate session was about to end last June.
In another occasion, I was invited to talk on feature writing before Naga high school students and I again observed a sense of anticipation for the eventual cityhood.
During these brief moments, Naganhons impressed me with their desire to become a city. Thus, I am sure they will go out of their way and be part of the process by voting during the Sept. 2 plebiscite.
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Unlike the mayors of Carcar and Bogo, Mayor Chiong had plotted out his development plans for Naga years back together with his late brother, the former mayor Enan Chiong.
We were there when Mayor Chiong inaugurated the new town plaza with its decorative lampposts more beautiful yet cheaper than the ones put up during the Asean summit and the ones in Metro Manila.
The mayor proudly announced his Vision and Leadership 2020 or VAL 2020 program that outlined his major plans until the year 2020.
And things seem to be falling in place with the photo-finish approval of its cityhood, the opening of the SME industrial park in Barangay Cantao-an, and the go-signal for the construction of the two Kepco power plants.
I share the view of several Naganhons that the vote this Sunday is also a vote of approval for the positive developments now happening in Naga.
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Why merely transfer the policemen caught red handed for extortion? These scoundrels should be dismissed right away from the police force. They should even be charged in court and eventually jailed.
Police Regional Office 7 Director Silverio Alarcio should realize that a huge section of the populace looks at the police force as a nest of extortionists. He should weed out these bad elements if the police force wants to win back the hearts and minds of Cebuanos.
In the minds of ordinary Cebuanos, robbers run circles around Cebu City cops because the latter only think of how they can extort money from selected victims. They are not seriously trying to rid the city of crime.
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With the filing of bills for reproductive health in Congress, I expect the Catholic Church to again flex its muscles in trying to convince lawmakers that these promote abortion and promiscuity.
I think Congress should be able to balance the conflicting interests of protecting the reproductive health of women and the morals concerns advanced by the church.
(Please check out “In Between Columns” at anol.blogs.friendster.com/anols_blog)
