By Atty. Antonio P. Pekas

Our headliner now is the supposed deadline of the Mountain Province DPWH to finish the detour bridge in Sabangan on July 15. Well, actually the deadline was many years ago. The people of Mountain Province were just stupidly patient they just suffered in silence. They should have raised a howl or even held daily demonstrations at the capitol until the bridge was done.
It also meant that the past provincial dispensation or the provincial leaders were incompetent in looking after the welfare of their constituents. Of course they were just interested in the money.
At least now, from what I have read, the provincial leadership is doing a hands-on supervision or monitoring of the work on the detour bridge so it will be finished on July 15. Hopefully, this July 15, not that of next year.
*** *** ***
After a very long time, I had the chance to pass by the Hangar part of the public market of Baguio City. The last time I was there was when street peddlers virtually appropriated for themselves the roads there. Then the crackdown which cleaned the area and the public market. There were a few parking spaces but the whole Hilltop area became clear, clean and wholesome.
But now, it is again congested by parked vehicles. And it appears there is no time limit of parking there. That is, one can just leave his vehicle and then go back for it late in the evening. Only one lane is left for moving vehicles such that when one stops to unload vegetables, the traffic will be at a standstill…. until forever.
So the clean and wholesome Hilltop area is gone. As to the Hangar Market, the same. Some measures should be arrived at to put some order in the unloading of vegetables and other loads there so the public can move freely and safely.
The buzzword during the Martial Law days comes to mind—Backsliding! Yes there was some sort of “backsliding” at the Hangar Market.
As to the parking areas, especially towards Hilltop, the city can make some good money by charging reasonable parking fees, by the hour.
Or, are there some people collecting parking fees for their own pockets.
*** *** ***
The word I always get, is the governor of Benguet is a very good governor. But he is not making a good living. That might be beyond his values or beyond his brains.
So allegedly the people making a good living are the people around him. “Kanya kanyang dilihensya,” somebody quipped. Really?
As to the future political scenario in the province, some insiders are saying, it will be Pacalso vs. Nestor Fongwan. Why won’t Fongwan run for congressman since Congressman Ronnie Cosalan will graduate as such so the position will be up for grabs and there appears no political heavy weight is eyeing that post? The source tells me the governorship is more lucrative for somebody who did not establish good connections in the national level and thus would be unable to source big funds for big ticket projects.
Here in Benguet, Fongwan has already mastered the sources of income.
What kind of income? Legal or illegal? My source did not answer.
Allegedly, jueteng and other illegal kinds of gambling are still flourishing in the province (and in Baguio City) and the operators pay their protectors quite well. Who are these protectors? I don’t know them.
Another good business in Benguet are the chicken shit. Those in the business allegedly allot about five pesos for every sack that enters the province. A conservative estimate on how many stinky sacks that come in everyday is 5,000. Who gets that P5.00 x 5,000 sacks per day?
My source said, “Everybody happy.” I didn’t know what he meant.
**