Pampanga’s newsmakers: Making a difference in ‘11

Tuesday, 3, 2012
CONGRESSWOMAN Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo’s rise and fall from power has eclipsed some of the recent issues and personalities for 2011, making her one of the top newsmakers in the country and her home province of Pampanga.
The former President’s arrest and current legal battles have polarized people, making every event of her current life a source of entertainment and fascination for most.
From her hospitalization in June for a “pinched nerve” at the St. Luke’s Medical Center in Taguig City, people have mixed reactions and feelings over how the government of President Benigno Aquino III is treating the former President.
Arroyo underwent three cervical spine surgeries and was also found suffering from hypoparathyroidism and a rare bone mineral disorder.
In November, Arroyo tried to flee the country to seek medical treatment but was prevented by the watchlist order issued by Justice Secretary Leila de Lima, despite the Supreme Court order that allowed her to leave.
A Pasay court issued a warrant of arrest against her for electoral sabotage and was detained at the St. Luke’s Medical Center in Taguig City, and then transferred to the Veterans Memorial Medical Center (VMMC) later on.
Her continuing struggles are expected to make news headlines even until the first quarter of 2012.
The ‘Loving’ Governor
If there is one word to describe the first woman governor of Pampanga, nothing will be more superlative than “loving.”
True to her being the “Mother of the Province,” Governor Lilia Pineda has opened the doors of the Capitol to the sick, the poor, the elders and virtually all Kapampangans who seek for her care.
Working almost 24/7 since she assumed her post, the governor has made health her flagship program, seeing to it that everyone is given the necessary medical attention, believing that one could get better education and achieve more only if he or she, young or old, is free from any illness and is truly healthy.
The loving governor has blazed through 2011 with flying colors, marking her first year in office with milestones in quarry collections, millions for development projects and dozens of grassroots programs that have made Pampanga a phenomenon. Indeed, it is for Kapampangans “Alagang Nanay, Serbisyong Tunay.”
‘Trustworthy’ Edpam
Angeles City Mayor Edgardo Pamintuan has planted a seed of trust in the hearts of Angeleños, which for years were burdened by disappointment in the previous administration. This is the very reason why his administration has done and achieved so much than what is expected.
The mayor’s expedient solutions to the City Government’s multiple debt problems at once earned him the trust of citizens and businessmen, a much-valued coin that paid for patience and consideration from the Angeles Electric Company, the Metro Clark Waste Management Corporation, and the Philippine Veterans Bank.
This willingness to trust Pamintuan has freed the City Government to launch more projects to benefit its citizenry, from medical and dental missions, finding solution to the traffic and garbage mess, the establishment of the Angeles City Renal Care unit to major improvements in the Rafael Lazatin Memorial Medical Center (RLLMC), to renegotiating plans for an impractical sports coliseum into a much-needed public city college.
Politicians’ ‘Godfather’

His expertise in lawmaking has made first district Representative Carmelo “Tarzan” Lazatin known a “godfather” of Pampanga politicians.
The past year, Lazatin’s performance in the Congress has earned him a Most Outstanding Congressman award, ranking third among all congressmen in the country by the Congress Magazine.
Lazatin gained the award following his pro-poor programs centered on education, health, employment and social services.
Moreover, Lazatin was the first congressman to have thought of addressing classroom backlog in his district when he started the “Kabahagi Ako: Adopt-A-School Program.” He was able to collect enough funds to repair and build at least 444 classrooms for Angeles City, Mabalacat and Magalang.
Lazatin was also the primary author of Mabalacat town’s cityhood bid, which he energetically pushed until its approval.
The ‘Visionary’ Mayor
A habitat of human excellence and global gateway by 2020. Such is the foresight of the City of San Fernando’s visionary: Mayor Oscar Rodriguez.
Embracing the Performance Governance System, the world-class city mayor has given public service a different meaning, which has translated to better and more decent lives for Fernandinos through a strong focus on education, which raised the bar of the middle-class to 57 percent from 19 percent in just over a year.
Through his impeccable leadership, global standard projects like Sagip Ilog have been pursued and realized, resulting in hundreds of awards and hall of fame distinctions in almost every sector for the City Government and Fernandinos by large, who rally behind the mayor in his quest: “Magsilbi Tamu!”
‘Enigmatic’ Dong
No congressman in Pampanga can claim to have the most frequency of media exposure than third district Representative Aurelio Gonzales.
The son of peasant family from Mexico town has been making the news in 2011 with his list of community programs on health, education, and agriculture and poverty alleviation.
Considered one of the top political shakers and movers in the province, Gonzales has been making the headlines in the previous year when his privilege speech was included in the selected speeches of the 15th Congress published by the Office of the Secretary General and the Legislative Information Resources Management Department.
He was also given the honor as the first Filipino civil engineer to be conferred honorary membership by the Association of Structural Engineers of the Philippines (Asep).
Gonzales also has claim to be the first Kapampangan lawmaker to address the new Civil Engineering Board passers at the Philippine International Convention Center last December.
The lawmaker has made it to local and national newspapers with his millions of assistance to scholars, farmers and indigents.
‘Resourceful’ Chichos
Like the word resourceful implies, Clark International Airport Corporation President Victor Jose I. Luciano was able to deal skillfully and promptly with new situations and difficulties.
His knowledge in the aviation industry has become an instrument in the development of the Diosdado Macapagal International Airport as the country’s premier gateway.
Luciano has been effective in drumbeating his programs for the airport which attracted airlines including several budget carriers.
He was also instrumental in the drawing of the master development plan of the airport terminal which can accommodate 12 million passengers a year once it fully developed.
‘Relentless’ Boking
His relentless efforts to turn Mabalacat town into a city have made Mayor Marino “Boking” Morales most popular in 2011.
Morales envisions his town to be the Makati City of the North. In the past year, he managed to complete the cityhood requirements under the law, which include a land area of at least 10,000 hectares; population of at least 150,000 and an income of P100 million in the past two years.
He gained more popularity when he bravely faced the land dispute issue staged by Tarlac officials that have somehow compromised Mabalacat’s cityhood. Later, Morales said the land dispute will not peril his town’s expected cityhood in 2012.
‘Loyal’
Mayor Jerry Pelayo, despite continuing efforts of some officials close to the present administration of President Benigno Aquino for him to join the ruling political party, decided stay on the side of former President now Congresswoman Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo.
Pelayo has defined the real meaning of loyalty, unlike other politicians who in exchange of favors immediately shifted to the other political party.
The leadership of the present ruling party wants him to finally leave Lakas-Kampi-CMD (Christian Muslim Democrats) and join instead the Liberal Party (LP).
However, Pelayo maintained that he will remain loyal to his current party affiliation while supporting the present administration’s advocacy for good governance and other projects being implemented directly affecting the people of Pampanga.
The ‘Proactive’ Bizman
Following the declaration of Governor Lilia Pineda on December 12 as a special non-working holiday, businessman Rene Romero, in a local television program, admitted that he stills support the governor.
The Pampanga Chamber of Commerce and Industry Inc. (PamCham), through Romero, raised doubts as to the legality of the Capitol’s declaration.
However, Romero stressed in one interview that he will not turn his back on Pineda insofar as the governor continuously supports the development of the business sector in the province.
“The issue is too small to abandon the governor,” he stated in front of thousands of television viewers.
Published in the Sun.Star Pampanga newspaper on January 03, 2012.
Source : http://www.sunstar.com.ph/pampanga/local-news/2012/01/02/pampanga-s-newsmakers-making-difference-11-198427

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