IT'S good news that former President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo will relieve her son Mikey in the second congressional district. That’s indeed welcome news. Even if she will not be a speaker, which to my calculation she will be one, because of her influence among her peers can further develop Pampanga particularly the second district where my hometown Porac is part.
The progress of Porac, once upon a time described by many as laid back, lethargic and underdeveloped started when Ayala Land Inc. (ALI) got involved in developing a thousand hectares of its real estate on the western portion the town, which is near the Subic-Tarlac-Expressway (SCTEX). There are reports that in due time, some 3,000 hectares more will be developed by the giant property developer.
Every Poraqueno is already visualizing what is going to happen. Mayor Jing Capil has every reason to smile for the fast pace of growth since the entry of Ayala Land Inc. in Porac. The corporate giant is currently developing a large portion of the 3,000 hectares. And every development indicates the rise of a metropolis. Not in my wildest dream I could have predicted this to happen. Capil tasked a team led by JP Martinez to prepare an urban plan that is to react to the unprecedented growth of the town.
Meanwhile, the election of 2022 and its outcome will have a great impact on the ongoing and future developments of our country. The Build, Build, Build program initiated by President Rodrigo Duterte should be continued and there should be a follow-through initiative. The elected leaders must have a vision prepared for the future of their communities. In the past decades, sorry to say but many political leaders weren’t forward-looking. Look at our towns and cities today. They are no longer livable because there was a lack of vision among the leaders of yesteryears. There are no railways working anymore, here in Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao. Bangladesh, considered one of the poorest countries, looks better. This country has a railroad system.
The ride from Tutuban main station in Manila up to Damortis in La Union and making stops in Malolos and Angeles are only memories now. There are so many press statements coming from the Department of Transportation with regards to the progress of the railway project. Pero puro press releases lang. Nothing concrete. Even the now MacArthur highway became so narrow and the government only started the expansion during President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo's watch. Too late, those trees planted and lining up a portion of the road stretch are too beautiful to be cut. No wonder people are against their uprooting.
I often wonder why the many presidents of our country coming from the central and northern Luzon, say, Elpidio Quirino, Ferdinand Marcos, Ramon Magsaysay and Diosdado Macapagal, didn’t think of an efficient railway system. Not necessarily like those speed trains of Japan, but a working train system. How many speakers of the House of Representatives came from Central and Northern Luzon? What happened to their advisers? There was never a national strategy drawn and if ever there was, it was not implemented.