Newsy week

PANGASINAN was abuzz with newsy items, from the restoration of the total ban on swine from other provinces entering the province, to the search for ex-convicts who were released by GCTA and ordered to return for revalidation, and the attempt on the life of former Cong. Spine. Competing with these was the shock of Dagupeños Monday morning on finding the MacArthur Bldg. (West Central Home Economics Bldg) completely stripped of its roof, walls and floors!

On the spot over the ban of swine entering Pangasinan because of African Swine Flu and the assassination attempt on Cong. Spine is P/Col. Rederico Maranan. It is his responsibility that he makes sure no cargo of swine of pork meat from outside risks the spread of ASF in the province and GCTA beneficiaries returned to Bilibid.

It is also Col. Maranan’s responsibility to find the more than 10 ambushers and the mastermind behind the slay attempt on former governor’s life.

The provincial police will also have to account for the GCTA beneficiaries not only for revalidation but to keep track of their activities.

Perhaps, this is the most difficult challenge before him his career as police chief and as provincial director. 

But what’s going for him is there is technology that can work wonders for him to complement his experience and leadership style.  There are CCTV footages that can trace and track the suspects without realizing that that their tracks could be not be fully erased.

That goes for the trucks loaded with banned cargo and the armed syndicates that plotted the assassination. The monitoring of the GCTA will also be helped by data and face recognition by CCTV cameras.

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HUAWEI’S OFFER. I‘ve been to Huawei’s headquarters in Szhenzen City in Guangdong province in China some three months ago.

With a group of national government officials, we were shown how the city was virtually transformed into a “No-Man’s land” for criminals and the city with the fastest response time to emergencies using Huawei’s technology. Unbelievable.

A driver in a tinted car or a suspected woman walking in the middle of a crowd can be easily detected.  That city is far too advanced for us to even imagine we can have the same.

But last month, I learned that DILG has entered into a working program for the development and promotion of Huawei’s Safe City program. It is initially introduced to Metro-Manila cities. I sure hope Pangasinan will have its turn soon.

Meanwhile, Huawei told me it is willing to make a free presentation to Dagupan, Urdaneta, San Carlos and Alaminos City governments who may wish to have an idea how it works.

I can help make the arrangements should any city wishes to avail of the offer.

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UPROAR OVER UNANNOUNCED RESTORATION.  In Dagupan City, our friend Rex Catubig woke up to be completely shocked, dumbfounded last Monday morning to find the iconic Home Economics building inside the West Central Elementary School (MacArtur Bldg.) partially “demolished”.

An advocate of promoting culture and heritage in Dagupan, what he saw turned his world upside down. He was instantly a social media warrior, in search of the people who committed the atrocity. He was not mollified by interjections assuring him that what appeared as a demolition was actually the start of a restoration work on the MacArthur Bldg. as a heritage building as part of a program of the DepEd.

His rants naturally caused an uproar in the city, and inside the city council hall. There was Councilor Joey Tamayo that sounded the alarm inside the city council, invoking the city ordinance authored by then Councilor Jigs Seen, making the building as part of the city’s heritage. The raucous led to the filing of the resolution requiring all contractors tasked to do any restoration work to coordinate with the city government.

Cong. Toff de Venecia was alarmed too.

Eventually, the issue was settled. DepEd came forward to confirm it was, indeed, a restoration work, authorized and funded by law as part of the Republic Act 11194, known as the Gabaldon School Buildings Conservation Act.

This was further confirmed by a call to me initially then a message from DepEd Usec. Alain Pascua offering his and DepEd’s apology to the city for the lapse in communication between the contractor and the city government. He said he will provide the city full information on the restoration and timeline within the week, including the use of tarpaulin to show the illustration of the envisioned restoration of the building.

Here’s Usec Pascua’s s message that attached illustrations and photos:  

 “The drawings of the eventual restored building is an initial one. The final and official image is still being rendered to be accurate enough. That image will be mounted on a billboard/tarpaulin to be displayed in the area.

“Please convey our apologies to the officials and citizens of Dagupan City for the lapses/errors that have been done resulting to the uproar, anxiety, inconvenience and/or frustration of our fellows.

“Rest assured that DepEd and myself are strongly committed to the restoration and conservation of Gabaldon School Buildings and other Heritage Builts. DepEd has so far repaired/restored about 337 Gabaldon school buildings, 284 of these were undertaken by this present administration. Thank you and my warmest regards!”

I will pass on the pics to Rex, hoping it would bring his blood pressure down to normal levels. (Rex heads the Jayceeken, group of senior and retired JC members in the city. Under his watch, the group is leading the move to create and increase level of awareness for cultural revival and environmental preservation in the city).

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