Beautiful but deadly By Ermin Garcia Jr.   THE beaches of Pangasinan are one of the best in Luzon owing to their fine sand. They should make top tourist destinations not only for local and foreign tourists but alas, they are not because nobody in our local government units seems…

Jai-teng makes cops and mayors happy By Ermin Garcia Jr. THE good days are back! Jai-teng  (jai-alai-cum-jueteng) is well and alive! Mayors and police chiefs are raking it in with 3 draws daily, thanks to the legal cover of a supposed license to operate off-fronton jai-alai betting stations.  The jai-alai…

Insidious  By Ermin Garcia Jr.   THE continued suspension of the operation of the Seafood Processing Plant brought to sharper focus not only the discriminatory application and enforcement of ordinances in Dagupan City by the Lim administration but a conspiracy to harass “enemies” of the city hall, in short, Mayor…

Unheralded hometown heroes By Ermin Garcia Jr.   WE have another reason to celebrate being Pangasinenses. Santy Barnachea of Umingan is again the new cycling king of the country! As the captain of the East Pangasinan Team that saw action in the national bikefest LBC Ronda Pilipinas Tour, he demonstrated…

The tale of the Daongan and Kangkungan By Ermin Garcia Jr.  
  YOU have to hand it to Dagupan Mayor Benjie Lim. He is one enterprising businessman who makes interesting deals when an opportunity strikes. It is that trait that separates the men from the boys – knowing when to…

The lying Kapitans By Ermin Garcia Jr.   THE barangay kapitans of Dagupan City were not only caught flatfooted by the floods but they have been caught as well with their fingers inside the cookie jar. What’s worse, their folly pointed to a conspiracy inside the mayor’s office (yes, again!)…

The PUNCH’s martial law issue   By Ermin Garcia Jr.  DATE: September 21, 1972. It was a Thursday and was supposed to be another routine day of writing stories, columns and editorial for The PUNCH’s September 24,1972 issue. On top of my mind then was to do a follow-up story…

Speaking of Mr. Lim By Ermin Garcia Jr.   DAGUPAN’S Mayor Benjie Lim may yet earn a lasting legacy for himself as an enterprising imaginative mayor if his touted roadmap for economic stability and growth in the city becomes a reality. I sincerely pray he would.

The economic saboteurs in Pangasinan  By Ermin Garcia Jr.  THE cable thieves are digging up underground cables and cutting wires off electric posts all over the province like picking apples in a farm. That is not as shocking as much as knowing that the governor’s office, the provincial board and…

A ‘high-stakes’ debate in the city? By Ermin Garcia Jr.  
  I AM told that my friend Benjie, the mayor, is already on the political offensive, constantly challenging his prospective foe in the 2013 elections, Vice Mayor Belen Fernandez, to a public debate on various issues on governance in the…