Friday, June 29, 2007 Climaco, 4 outgoing councilors say adieu to Council
DESPITE differences in opinions that led to tense situations and mixed emotions, the City Council batch 2004-2007 under the leadership of Vice Mayor Beng Climaco believes it stood the test of time with flying colors.
Vice Mayor Climaco and Councilors Luis Climaco, Elias Enriquez, Cesar Jimenez and Milabel Velasquez bid farewell and recalled their experiences during their stay in the Council during individual valedictory addresses during the Council's last session day Wednesday.
With all humility, Vice Mayor Climaco, who will assume as the representative of the city's first district in Congress starting noon of June 30, reported that the council under her reign approved a total of 110 ordinances, most of which are now being implemented.
Because of quality of laws passed and the satisfactory performance, the City Council was adjudged as the 2nd most outstanding Sangguniang Panlungsod nationwide in the highly urbanized category in a competition organized by the Department of Interior and Local Government jointly with the Philippine Councilor's League recently.
The City Council bested all others in the region.
In her address, the outgoing vice mayor reminisced the days when she started her political career as a councilor in 1998. "I thought I was too young to be in politics and I was the only female member of the council and I found it a challenge."
The guidance of her colleagues and the inspiration of her father, the late Jose Climaco, also a former Council presiding officer, helped her achieve great things.
"I stand in your presence with gratitude above all to God and to each and every one of you who helped shape my life and bring me where I am today."
Her stay in the council made her stronger as a person and as a politician. "Little by little I learned to say no and objected to bingo and negotiated contracts. Likewise as a member of the council I also learned to preserve dignity and integrity of the august body despite the different opinions of the members."
She thanked her fellow council members, the council staff, the media, the barangay officials and her personal staff for all the support and assistance all these years. She has one frustration though, that is to march down the aisle with her knight in shining armor. But she said it will be her homework in her stint in Congress.
Councilors Climaco, Enriquez, Jimenez and Velasquez likewise thanked the Council members as well as the Council staff, the media, the barangay councils and all those who have been with them all these years.
Climaco thanked the local residents for giving him the opportunity to serve in the council for 15 years. He might be out of the Council after his failed bid for reelection last May 14, but Climaco stressed that public service will still be a part of him as he will continue serving the people in his private capacity as a lawyer.
Climaco said he will also be involved in sports being an accredited professional boxing judge. He will also be active in bowling and Little League as well as softball where he is a national director.
"We hope that the incoming Council will continue the legacy of serving the people with honesty, integrity and sincerity," Climaco added.
Councilor Jimenez in his speech reported that he authored 15 ordinances and co-authored over 40 others during his 9-year stint in the Council. Worth mentioning in his list of ordinances is Ordinance 268 which prescribes guidelines, rules and regulations on resettlement and socialized housing projects and the creation of the Housing and Land Management Office.
He cited lessons learned during his stay in the Council and stressed that "things happen for a reason" and that with the elections over, elected officials should have the "desire to look beyond the political battlefield and to move beyond the bitterness and partisanship of the recent past."
"I shall be satisfied and contented of being remembered as one who chose principles over popularity and did what was right rather than what was suitable or desirable under the circumstances," Jimenez added.
For his part Councilor Enriquez, who is assuming as the city administrator effective noon of June 30, recalled the moments of happiness, sadness and victory in the City Council.
In line with the city's new branding as Asia's Latin City, Enriquez delivered his speech in Spanish that earned applause from the audience and his Council colleagues. He remembered the lengthy discussions as well as controversies on issues like the cockpit operation, the application of the Linktone Mining in Vitali and the Phidco, among others.
Councilor Velasquez, meanwhile, sent a written speech and was read before the Council by Councilor Asbi Edding. She thanked Vice Mayor Climaco for the guidance and the members of the council for efficiently helping her in her work and teaching her the hard rudiments of legislation.
Velasquez took note of the passage of the videoke ordinance that she authored and considered as her "last safeguard to promote tranquility, peace and quality time for studies of our children".
Velasquez, who is undergoing medication for leukemia since May 29, is finalizing the proposed ordinance on barangay blood council, which she hoped would be approved by the incoming council. The same proposal was presented for first reading by Edding during the Council session Wednesday.
In her prepared speech, the lady councilor who lost her bid for the vice mayoralty post last May 14, expressed some sentiments for so-called misinformation allegedly spread out by one of her political opponents prior to the elections last month.
The last council session Thursday was also attended by most of the incoming councilors. (Sheila E. Covarrubias)
