NO LAVISH mansions to display, no expensive cars to drive, except his private pick-up truck intended for social services, and unlike the typical politicians who are fond of posh outfits, he goes around to his constituent wearing only slippers and ordinary fashion at most.
This is how you will see candidate Avelino C. Amangyen – the incumbent mayor in the municipality of Paracelis, now gunning the congress seat for the lone district of Mountain Province. What’s unusual about politicians, east of this province, are their strong tradition of helping one another in times of need.
Seldom can one find a millionaire politician here because what politicians receive from the government are given back to the people. Once you enter politics, your house becomes the hospital, school and restaurant of the constituents. This is their living tradition.
Prior to his entry in public service, Amangyen was a contractor of public school infrastructures. His platforms include measures to support the needs of the newly converted Mountain Province University, support the readiness of the k-12 graduates by providing scholarship and training programs including livelihood opportunities after schooling.
Amangyen said each municipality has their potentials. For Paracelis, senior high school students must be equipped with knowledge and skills in automotive and industrial technology since mechanized farming is the municipality’s potential. Due to its fertile soil, untapped natural gas and solar energy resources, Paracelis is a promising agricultural centre of the North. It can be considered as the fruit and corn granary of the province. Roads leading to this town from Bauko and nearby municipalities must be well maintained in order to further boost the municipality’s potential.
In Barlig and Natonin, utilization of the biodiversity resources in terms of bio products are possible. Knowledge in this specific field must be introduced. For Bontoc, Sadanga and other municipalities, renewable energy resources like the mini hydrothermal plants or Run-off Rivers can be tapped. Mountain province has several rivers that can be converted into power sources.
Amangyen added that the province has several water resources, it is sad however that the people in the province are not investing in this particular area, hence are being exploited by business companies outside of the province. Our folks specially the professionals, must be trained and to be knowledgeable enough for this hydrothermal endeavors. We need to prepare them by providing what they need, if our goal is to develop power resources.
“If given the chance to sit in Congress I will see to it that aside from developing our power resource potentials, the tourism rich municipalities of Sagada, Bontoc and other probable places will be supported and developed,” Amangyen said in conclusion.
For Baguio and Benguet, let us glimpse at the platforms of Congressional candidates Peter Rey Bautista and Nestor Fongwan. To be continued...