AROUND 1,370 people are running in Cebu in the May 13 elections, but only 21.2 percent or some 291 contenders are female.
While female candidates might be the minority in the local polls, two of them are vying for the Province’s top post. (The third gubernatorial candidate, Roliveth “Klasmit Boyet” Cortes, died last February.)
From 1899, Cebu was under the leadership of male visionaries until Rep. Gwendolyn “Gwen” Garcia (Cebu, 3rd) succeeded her father, Pablo Garcia, in 2004.
She was reelected in 2007 and in 2010. She defeated incumbent Gov. Hilario Davide III for a third and final term.
Garcia said that if elected governor in the May 13 elections, she would revive and improve her 12-point agenda covering infrastructure, water, power, health, education, agriculture and food production, women and children, business, tourism and the environment.
Vice Gov. Agnes Magpale, a member of the Durano clan of Danao City, is also running for governor. She is running under the National People’s Coalition and Bakud (Barug Alang sa Kauswagan ug Demokrasya) party.
Thirty-seven years ago, she became Danao City’s vice mayor and later on served as Provincial Board (PB) member for three consecutive terms from 1992 to 2001.
After her term expired, she took a break from politics and returned to the PB in 2004.
Following the demise of then vice governor Gregorio Sanchez Jr., Magpale officially assumed the post in April 2011.
At the end of 2012, Magpale took her oath as acting governor for six months after then governor Garcia was ordered suspended by the Office of the President.
In 2013, Magpale was elected vice governor and was reelected in 2016.
If she is elected governor, Magpale promises to continue and strengthen the six key development agenda of the Davide administration covering health and social services; countryside development; education and technical vocational training; environmental protection, climate change and disaster risk reduction management; infrastructure development, tourism and investment promotion; and law and order.
As current chairperson of the Provincial Council for the Welfare of Children and the Provincial Women’s Commission, Magpale wants to establish more facilities and programs that will help protect members of the vulnerable sector.
As the elections get closer, many ask themselves: Who between Garcia and Magpale deserves my vote?
The gubernatorial candidates laid their plans and platforms of governance in separate time slots during Mega Cebu’s “Klarohay ‘Ta!” forum last April 5. These are excerpts of their answers:
What are your plans to address problems on transportation and traffic management?
REP. GWEN GARCIA: We should make Metro Cebu Development and Coordinating Board (MCDCB) more active. There should be more active participation of the public sector, particularly the governor. Provide leadership and tell other local government units (LGUs) that we need to work together. Perhaps, we can create another body that would be respected even in just so far as traffic management in our national roads is concerned. Leadership is just the key and essence of it because LGUs have their mayors and they are leaders in themselves, so they need to find, see and believe in leadership for them to cooperate.
I think a more immediate solution, just from observing traffic flow, is to develop U-turn slots. If we have U-turn slots, the car will just go with the flow of those on the national road and then somewhere, it will take a U-turn. The provincial roads also need to be upgraded.
Mass transport is the only way to go... Of course, it’s the LRT (Light Railway Transit) that is more ideal. I’m trying to keep an open mind on the BRT (Bus Rapid Transit), but it needs a dedicated lane... If we dedicate a lane for the BRT, you’re going to narrow the available space for the burgeoning volume of cars. For now, given our existing infrastructure, the way I see it, the BRT might worsen the traffic.
VICE GOV. AGNES MAGPALE: I think the long-term solution would be the MCDCB project, the Metro Cebu Circumferential Road (a 21-kilometer bypass road from the City of Naga in the south to Danao City). But what we’re doing also, by improving the road conditions in the towns and municipalities, we will be enticing people to move out of the city. I think that would be a big help in traffic solution. Our efforts in building better communities in the rural areas is also one of (the solutions). If I may, I don’t want to preempt, but the circumferential road in the north, we have actually found a solution to bypass Canduman (in Mandaue City), Consolacion, Liloan... If that will be improved, and I plan to really widen it, light it up, because that could be a solution to the massive traffic problem along Mandaue, Consolacion.
I also support the BRT because it’s almost ready. We have to do something. I read that for LRT, it would take 10 years for a feasibility study and another 10 years to implement it. But I think the BRT is almost ready.
How do you intend to improve health care programs in the province?
GARCIA: We need to remember first and foremost that our district and provincial hospitals are meant primarily to help our poor people and this should not be treated as a business. More importantly, we need to address our social responsibility for those that can’t afford healthcare. We have to focus more on efficiency, professionalism. When I was governor, I challenged all of our LGUs to enroll in PhilHealth as many indigents as they can. At one point, the Province of Cebu had the highest enrollment rate in the PhilHealth program... I plan to reimplement it (if elected) because it was not continued.
Attracting doctors to our district and provincial hospitals was a perennial problem. What happened was that each hospital had items, along with a particular salary grade. The thing was, once they were appointed and assigned, no one can replace them when they are absent. Sometimes there is vacancy in the position because no one wants to work in the far-flung areas. I decided to outsource doctors, nurses, health aides, drivers even. So it was now the responsibility of the private service provider to ensure that there is a doctor 24 hours, seven days a week.
MAGPALE: Before, doctors had to go through an agency. They were outsourced. Now, we hired 53 medical practitioners with plantilla positions and that is an incentive. That is why we have an anesthesiologist, an internist. I happened to experience an emergency and I was dropped in Danao City (Provincial Hospital), and I was pleasantly surprised that there was an internist already. (We’re) staffing our hospitals with competent doctors.
We have acquired equipment for hospitals and we have upgraded their capability. There are now operating rooms and recovery rooms. We have cleaner hospitals this time.
From shootouts to petty crimes, how safe is Cebu for residents and visitors? How will you bring back the sense of security to the public?
GARCIA: When I was governor, I created the Provincial Inter-Agency Task Force Against Criminality. We got all the implementing agencies that could play a role in addressing criminality together so each of them can play a part. I, as the governor, wielded the baton.
We also had the witness protection program, the tipster program with incentives so that we can truly fight drug abuse. The President (Rodrigo Duterte) has indeed called us number one in drug use.
We will address (lack of rehabilitation centers) once I get the statistics. What is more urgent here is to actually fight drugs.
MAGPALE: First and foremost, the illegal drug problem. I think we were the first province to have the Cebu Provincial Anti-Drug Abuse Office. It is very effective. We are taking care of the police. We’re giving awards, financial assistance. We’re giving awards to towns that have successfully lowered the prevalence of drug abuse because I believe one of the causes of criminality is drug abuse.
We meet quarterly with the Peace and Order Council. That’s where we discuss measures on how to address problems. We’ve given the police cars, vests, computers—everything they need.