Here and There
No. 1 Pinoy in sports today — Paeng, not Manny
By Gerry Garcia
FINALLY this historic capital town of Lingayen seat of provincial governance, will find its long-planned push for citihood a reality under the determined leadership of Mayor Jonas Castañeda. At least, hopes are high.
Mayor Castañeda, finding factors supportive of his bid for Lingayen’s becoming a city, is also appealing to the six district congressmen of the province to support a bill seeking to convert the capital town into a component city.
Among the requirements mandated by law needed to effect this conversion, Castañeda said, is an increase in his town’s annual budget to a level above 80 million pesos and a population, based on government statistics, of at least not less than 100,000.
Lingayen has so far attained these, the mayor said, adding there are plans to establish an eco-tourism zone to complement existing tourism attractions, like the Capitol Park, World War II Memorial Park, the recently spruced up Maramba Boulevard and Park leading to the provincial capitol and, behind the capitol building itself, the Lingayen coast-line facing the famous Lingayen Gulf.
Further there is the plan, Castañeda continues, to launch in Lingayen in January next year its own “Bagoong and Bucayo Festival” to showcase two of the town’s popular products.
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It’s a pity GMA 7’s news channel “24 Oras” missed out on something important to us in its proclamation of a 14- yr-old coed as Asia’s Sudoku Champ besting her rivals from other parts of the Asia-Pacific region in Brand’s Sudoku Challenge 2008 held in Vivo City, Singapore from July 11 to 13.
The 14 yr-old coed, Sara Jane Cua, is a second year student at the Pangasinan University Institute in Dagupan City. Sara, a 1st placer, won $10,000 cash prize; was 2nd youngest participant in a contest participated in by 50 students and professionals from Thailand, China, India, Singapore, Hong Kong, Malaysia and the Philippines.
Another good news: Our Philippine Embassy in Turkey said two high school students from the Fountain International School in San Juan, Metro Manila, won two gold medals and one bronze medal in international competitions held in various cities in Turkey. These two champs, Royce Pacibe and Rafi Dimakuta, snared a gold medal in the third young inventors physics project olympiad held in Saravejo, Bosnia Herzegovina. Their project “crystal radio” won them another gold medal in the second international competition in Tabilisi, Georgia.
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In the world of Sports, the best Pinoy record-holder today is our own bowler Paeng Nepomuceno, not Manny Pacquiao, at least not yet.
Six-time world champion Paeng was honored for the third time by the Guinness Book of World Records, this time for winning the most number of worldwide career tournament championship titles.
Paeng first made it to the Guinness World Record for winning four world cup titles in three different decades (70s, 80s and 90s); also for being the youngest player at 19 to win a world title.
In 2003 Nepomuceno was recognized by the Bowler’s Journal International as the “greatest international bowler of all time.”
He is the only bowling athlete in the world who has won championship titles in the Americas, Europe, Asia, the Middle East and Africa.
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We mourn the passing of a good friend and former colleague at Dagupan’s St. John Cathedral Male Choir during the early 60s, with his late elder brother Engr. Manuel Fernandez, a fellow-Thomasian, is also a younger brother to my compadre Dr. Luciano Fernandez, former head of the Pangasinan Medical Center, now retired. We also would like to share the grief, over Albert’s passing, with his wife Amelia Mencias Fernandez and children Drs. Joseph Arnold and Sebe Fernandez, April and Nats Villarba.
(Readers may reach columnist at sundaypunch2@yahoo.com. For past columns, click http://sundaypunch.prepys.com/archives/category/opinion/here-and-there/ For reactions to this column, click “Send MESSAGES, OPINIONS, COMMENTS” on default page.)
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