By Leonardo Micua

 

WE spotted seven opposition councilors of Dagupan sporting stolid faces when Councilor Michael Fernandez announced during his privilege speech that Dagupan is a recipient of the 2024 Seal of Good Financial Housekeeping (SGFH), an award given to local government units that comply with standards on good public fund management.

Vice Mayor and Sangguniang Panlungsod presiding officer Bryan Kua said the reason why Dagupan was able to bag the 2024 SGFH was partly because of the passage of the 2024 annual budget of some P1.12 billion, although late by more than two months, it was nevertheless passed within the time frame allowed by law, which is March 31 every year.

Kua asked every member of the SP to applaud themselves for passing the annual budget within the specified time frame, but you know what we saw: Only five councilors, other than VM Kua, were seen clapping.

The seven opposition councilors in the session hall did not move a muscle.

The SGFH is the best proof that the funds entrusted to the city government were properly accounted and audited, or in other words, well managed.

More stolid were the faces of the seven opposition councilors when the iron Mike (Fernandez) further said the SGFH is a step towards attaining the more extensive Seal of Good Local Governance (SGLG).

The opposition would not like this to happen. They obviously do not want Belen to get credit for making Dagupan to the list of SGLG recipients.

Dagupan missed the boat in the search of LGUs for 2023 SGLG, not only because of the long delayed city’s annual budget that year (which was passed only after three opposition councilors traveled overseas for holidays), but also because of the city’s huge accumulation of unused savings that reached P600 million.

This was no fault of Belen but of the seven majority councilors who derailed the budget.

I recall that the seven majority councilors even proposed a meeting with Mayor Belen with her alone to discuss matters about the submitted supplemental budget as well as the 2023 annual budget, but she ignored such a secret meeting.

She knew that if she met them in secret, it would be a political disaster for her, people suspecting her of entering into a secret deal with the devils.

So, a 2024 SGLG for Dagupan is no longer a remote possibility.

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A report on TV about the poisoning of five stray dogs in Agoo, La Union by the owner’s own relative may have taught a lesson or two to some dog owners on Bartolome Ceralde Street in Bonuan, Dagupan City. 

There are no more dogs roaming the streets at any time of day and night, leaving their wastes everywhere and disturbing the peace with their barking.

This is the one good thing that may have been brought out by that incident.

But I must clarify that I am not glorifying the poisoning of the five dogs. This is still a crime under the Animal Welfare Act, and the person who poisoned the dogs must still be held liable.

I may not have dogs. But I am taking care of pet cats.

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I heard that some longtime leaders of the Lim political family are now moving to the UnliSerbisyo Team of Mayor Belen while others are still preparing to cut ties that bind them to the Lims.

Take, for instance, this woman in Barangay Pantal who was originally a political leader of Belen in 2019 but moved to Brian Lim in 2022 when the latter was still mayor. Now, she wants Mayor Belen to take her back as her leader.

Another former government worker, also from Pantal, a known backer of the Lims in the last two or three previous elections, already turned his back on the Lims and is coaxing his neighbors, according to my source, to  “Vote straight Team Belen”.

Their migration to Team UnliSerbisyo is one indication that the campaign of the other team is possibly in short of campaign funds.

But, a word of caution to Mayor Belen: Beware of the wolf in a sheep’s clothing. Though your opponent cannot fight you face to face because you are the incumbent, they could still devise a scheme to cause you harm through planted spies.

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