By Anthony A. Araos
These days, some officials are seen in wedding occasions, others at birthday and baptism parties. Still, others are at funeral wakes. Why? Well, elections are just around the corner.
Baguio City Councilor Faustino Olowan is a different one. He has the rarest qualities of genuine dedication to duty. Olowan, also a lawyer, is regularly spending much time holding consultative meetings with nongovernment organizations (NGOs), people’s organizations (POs) and civil society organizations (CSOs). Councilor Olowan certainly does more- he gets the comments and feedback of the citizenry on key issues affecting them. To date, he has inputted a lot of data on the conditions of the people, most especially the poor. Why?
In a recent conversation, Councilor Olowan revealed at length that he is spending a great deal of his time preparing his legislative agenda for the next three years. Well, Olowan is running for Vice Mayor in the nation’s summer capital, under the ruling Partido ng Demokratiko Pilipino-Lakas ng Bayan (PDP-Laban) party.
If elected, Councilor Olowan is seeking not just to maintain Baguio’s reputation as a major commercial hub in the Cordillera Administrative Region (CAR), but also to make it more competitive. As the presiding officer of the powerful Sangguniang Panglungsod (SP), he shall endeavor only for quality legislation.
Olowan is known as a hardworking, dedicated and an articulate public servant. He has a reputation of refusing to compromise on principles in order to please political allies or City Hall bigwigs. After all, he stands on the side of the people. The PDP-Laban slate in Baguio City, therefore, hoping to broaden its electoral appeal, chose Atty. Olowan as it’s vice mayoralty bet in the May 13, 2029 midterm polls. Adding to Olowan’s appeal to the party is his compassion for the urban poor and many others in the marginalized sector.
In fact, Olowan’s planned legislative thrust for the City Council from 2019 to 2022 is a manifestation of his deep-feeling and sentiment for the voiceless and powerless, presaging the prospects of improving the living standards of the poor.
The strong-minded, strong-willed Olowan is presently the chairman of the Committee on Laws, Human Rights and Justice. He also heads the body on barangay administrative cases for Division 3. A perfect choice by his colleagues since Olowan has served as Punong Barangay in Lucnab village. Likewise, he is a member of the Committee on Public Utility, Transportation and traffic Legislation and Committee on Human Rights, Justice, Protection and Safety and Peace and Order.
The city’s growth is also largely attributed to the tourism industry. It is hoped that if elected as the next vice mayor, Olowan gives priority to establishing of strong ties with the other provinces in the Car, notably Ifugao. This is one way of drawing tourists from Baguio City to visit Ifugao. A number of city residents have deep-rooted origins in Ifugao.
Forging sisterhood pacts between Baguio City and the towns of Asipulo, Banaue, Hungduan and Mayoyao, for instance, is an excellent idea in boosting the tourism industry’s stock in Ifugao. It is so easy to understand and appreciate the fact that there are numerous attractions in these towns. Sadly, due to the ineptness of provincial government officials the tourism industry’s dismal record in drawing the foreign tourists here is doing a big disservice to the economy.
There aren’t many inexpensive destinations you need to visit and enjoy, and Ifugao’s rice terraces are one of them. The rice terraces in Mayoyao are must-see sites for local and foreign tourists. The province is also visited because of other wonders whose beauty is so captivating you would not want to leave the place.
By doing so, Atty. Olowan will be most helpful in ensuring that there is a hyperactive government not just in Baguio City, but also in a number of municipal governments in impoverished Ifugao.
This is a way to try and achieve the goal of sharing one’s blessings to needy towns in this part of the country.
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There are ample choices for Banaue voters in the mayoralty race. One of them is Atty. Placido Wachayna Jr. He is running as an independent.
Wachayna, a graduate of Saint Louis University in Baguio City, is known to be a kind-hearted and soft-spoken person. Wooing voters to cast their lot for him on May 13, 2019 is not a difficult task. He has a genuine concern for the poor and his position to curb corruption is well-pronounced.
Wachayna, whose interaction in the private sector was marked by numerous accomplishments recognized by many prestigious organizations, is a man of action. This sets him apart from many others who fell into the trap of “words only, achieving nothing.” He is believed to initiate and implement a program or project, rather merely “talk here and there and do nothing.” Atty. Wachayna is not like the rest. He is one of the best!
Apart from the tourism industry, if elected Atty. Wachayna is likely to have to face head on longstanding concerns on problems in the agriculture sector and unemployment. For one, there is a need to ensure farmers gain access to financing and lending centers for loans. How about having highly-trained, well-supervised credit technicians who will identify financially viable projects and prepare loan proposals, which farmers are not trained to do? This surely makes a lot of sense for a still predominantly farming town such as Banaue.
A master list of graduates of various learning institutions who are jobless should be drawn by the Office of the Mayor, in consultation with the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE). Tie-ups with major corporations and companies in Metro Manila should be considered. A data-based Task Force on Jobs and Livelihood is not a bad idea. It should be bolstered with an enabling innovative mechanism to immediately identify gainful jobs outside of the town.
These wide-ranging reforms must come in fruition. At the very least, during the first 90 days of the next administration and shall be deemed as a milestone in governance. By the way, Mayor Jerry Dalipog, who is on his third and last term, is running for governor.
This new platform seeks to provide solution to a basic problem in Banaue— a town where people largely rely on tourist arrival figure. To date, there is still this never-ending cycle of poverty engulfing most villages of Banaue. Incoming officials must work triple time to empower cash-starved folks by offering jobs, jobs and jobs.
As one of the energetic leaders of Banaue, Atty. Wachayna is widely respected for his views and plans on enhancing administrative skills of personnel at the municipal hall. Many of them are in dire need of retraining on basic office procedures and lack information on digital innovations.
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Mayoyao voters should not waste the opportunity of putting into office a young lady who is seeking a seat at the Sangguniang Bayan. Christy Nagchegpan is running for that position under the Liberal Party. Ms. Nagchegpan used to work with Board Member Noli Maguiwe of Aguinaldo.
Nagchegpan vowed to work toward improving the conditions of the town’s youth sector. In an exclusive interview with the ZigZag Weekly, Nagchegpan underscored the need to address the drug menace on all fronts to ensure that residents, especially students are shielded from the lure and ill-effects of illegal drugs.
She is also committed to initiate programs, projects and activities to harness and develop the potentials of the young and women to the fullest. This gave me a complete picture of the pressing need to put her and another female (Myra Faith Lumayna) aspirant at the municipal council.
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Sen. Aquilino “Koko” Pimentel III has filed a bill calling for mandatory electoral debates to give aspiring candidates the chance to share their platforms of government. Thus, I fully support the passage of Senate Bill No. 2147. It is a step in the right direction in so far as keeping the people well-informed of the position taken by a candidate on any given issue. If the candidate refuses to take part for flimsy reason, it is hoped that the electorate likewise act accordingly by depriving him or her votes. There is no reason whatsoever to support an insurmountably ignorant candidate. An advisory stating the following should be issued: “Voting for this misfit, unfit candidate is hazardous to the nation’s health!”
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Travel to the capital town of Lagawe on your way to Banaue, Hungduan or Mayoyao and make a quick overnight stopover at Garden Terraces, considered as one of the best lodging inns out here. Owned by Mrs. Vangie Tayaban, Garden Terraces offers well-designed and well-furnished rooms at affordable rates. To foreign tourists: Stay here and feel alright at all times! Garden Terraces is a stunning place to rest and relax and it is not far from the public market and Don Bosco High School.
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If Baguio City is presently chilling to the tune of 9.8 degrees Celsius, most parts of Ifugao are also experiencing cool mornings. Thus, selling of even second-hand jackets is brisk.
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CBM Restaurant will treat Lagawe residents and elsewhere to a heartwarming dining experience with special meals for breakfast, lunch and dinner.
Specialties such as spaghetti, sotanghon, pancakes, liempo, longganisa (Dimiang’s), boneless bangus (milkfish) and pinunnog are surely crowd-pleasers.
A yummy breakfast treat of ham, egg and rice with unlimited lemon grass tea is priced at seventy five pesos.
For merienda or snacks, the lumpia (spring roll) is fantastically hearty. There is also the popular “halo halo” treat. Undoubtedly, the desserts look life works of art and taste as good.
Using the best ingredients from here and Cagayan Valley Region, owner Christy Martin will offer all-time favorites from various parts of the world. She should try chilled tofu with condiments of wasabi, miso sauce, grated ginger, sesame and mushrooms. It is a great treat for the Chinese Lunar New Year. Likewise, a “sisig” treat for food lovers this side of the globe should be eyed by the restaurant management. Apart from the delicious meals awaiting its patrons, CBM Restaurant’s prompt and courteous service by its young and well-trained crew is a top priority.
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Executive Committee members of the Ifugao provincial government viewed Memorandum Order No. 2019-5, outlining the use of Land Bank of the Philippines Automated Teller Machine (ATM) cards for the wages of job-ordered employees of the provincial government, as OK and timely. Board Members Robert Humiwat and Robert Mangyao are not concurring to their thoughts. I don’t look at it that way too! I am aghast with this action for it is ambitious and there is no compelling reason for it. What the proponents of this action did essentially was to disregard the fact that job-ordered personnel have no job security. When terminated, everything else goes awfully wrong. With no money to deposit in the account, a withdrawal is likely to take place. The risk of reducing the maintaining balance of 500 pesos is high. The account becomes dormant and the bank deducts a significant each month from the existing balance. Sooner or later this account ends up with a zero balance. You simply “donated” your hard-earned money to the bank. What a cruel world!
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Finally, some thoughts for our readers: “Seek my kingdom first and everything you need will be given to you.” Lk 21:31
“And God placed all things under his feet and appointed him to head over everything for the church, which is his body, the fullness of him who fills everything in every way.” Eph 1:22-23**
