By Gonzalo Duque

 

I congratulate Mayor Belen Fernandez for a victory that is well-deserved. Honestly, I was surprised by her huge margin of victory of more than 14,000 over incumbent Mayor Brian Lim.

I surmise that maybe, the 14,000-margin was the consequence of the miscues not only of the ‘Quadro de Jack’ that ruled the City Hall since day one of the Lim administration, but other corrupt officials who harassed and extorted money from our vendors and small business owners.

Mayor Belen must put all those ingrates in their final resting place by kicking them out. She must give them the boot, they who made lives of ordinary Dagupeños miserable because that’s what she promised to do on her first day in office. In fact, Mayor Belen must already be sending chills up the spines of the kotongeros and members of the 5-6 money-lending  syndicate.

It was really sad that Brian, who is like a son to me, never had good advisers who would not use their positions to enrich themselves and abuse the people’s confidence in him. I hope that Belen’s convincing win has sent a thunderous message to our good friends in the Jaycees, the organization that made him world president.

His duties as a public servant, first as a councilor, vice mayor and then mayor must have taken precedence over his affairs in the Jaycees.

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I read the graft case that the Brian camp filed against Belen less than a week before the election.

I looked at all the documents and the charge has no basis because the lot in question donated to the city under Belen’s administration was already segregated and accepted by the donee, through the Sangguniang Panlungsod at that time. Where’s the graft there? 

This donation redounded to the benefits of illegal settlers in Pugaro-Suit who were provided with lots upon which they built their houses. Anong masama doon?

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Brian Lim could have been a better mayor if he only stopped playing politics from day one. He committed a blunder when he shelved all the good programs and projects of his predecessor, Belen.

Had he continued the programs, the people would have thought of him as a different kind of leader who is not vindictive. But he didn’t.

A fine example is the Dagupan Diagnostic Center and Lying-in Clinic which was not opened for three long years. That was a good project supported by the DOH. Had he continued it, he would have not only set an example of good leadership but could have grabbed the credit all to himself.

Eh, kaso, he didn’t care if the poor people didn’t have access to the facility and just wanted people to know that he was the new boss. In fact, I noticed that even during the campaign, the insults orchestrated by Brian flew thick against Belen Fernandez.

So imbes na iparada ni Brian ang kanyang achievements, pinag-iinsulto niya ang kanyang  karibal. Ayaw ng mga taga-Dagupan yan. He misjudged the temperament of our people. Ngayon, saan na pupulutin ang mga Quadro de Jack? 

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I joined the proclamation of Mayor Belen, Vice Mayor Bryan Kua and three of their councilors. After coming out of the Sangguniang Panlungsod session hall, I was surprised to see that most of the buildings surrounding the city hall were already torn down.

Parang racketer… rocket ship demolition ang nangyari. He obviously rushed it just to preempt the plan of Belen three years ago to transfer the city hall elsewhere without showing a new city hall’s design and features as a holistic government center.

No plans were made and no public hearings called, worse no source of funding was even identified. Anong klasing project yan?

 Before giving it a go, Belen ought to review the project, including the demolition of the buildings housing different offices.

Just a fair warning to everyone at the city hall, whenever you talk about the a new city hall, many things happen. Think bakit kung city hall ang pinag-uusapan, may nangyayaring parang hindi maganda. Natalo si Belen nuon. Natalo si Brian ngayon.  Maybe the former mayors who held office there are saying something. Kaya pag-aralan muna ninyong mabuti kung ano yang gagawin ninyo nang hindi padalos-dalos”. 

Meanwhile, Mayor Belen should consider letting go of the national offices holding office at the city hall because the area at city hall complex is now constricted.

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