Bring home the debate

HOUSE Bill 4267, a proposed law that will re-arrange the district assignments of towns and cities in the province and create a 7th district, has roused strong and opposing opinions among our politicians.

On one side are the authors of the bill who, naturally, are defending the proposal. Among them is Second District Rep. Victor Agbayani, our former governor who served out the maximum three full terms, insists that their proposition is in the best interest of the province. His partner, Third District Rep. Rachel Arenas, a neophyte in Pangasinan politics, has not been as vocal about the issue and there are reports that she might be pulling out her sponsorship and support.

The creation of a new district would mean expanding the province’s representation and this would result in, among other things, additional Priority Development Assistance Fund – more popularly known as the pork barrel – of at least P70 million. This appears to be the main motivation for provinces like Cavite that are actively seeking additional representation today.

Of course, a presumptive element to it is the fact that additional and more pork barrel will mean added new avenues for corruption.

For reasons of their own, the board members have argued that a 7th district would be superfluous since the proposed redistribution of towns and cities would have new groupings whose areas are not contiguous to each other.

What the board members, however, are not openly saying is that the proposal would affect their existing political network for which they have invested much, and a new grouping would require them to re-align their links which means having to spend more, particularly come 2010. A new district would also mean an additional board member who will have to be given a share of the provincial pie.

But enough has been said by both camps on media.

As the proposed law is deliberated in the Senate, it is imperative that the discussions are brought home, i.e. here in Pangasinan so that Pangasinenses can talk about it among themselves.

Agbayani and Arenas, the other district representatives, and the board members must appear in a series of fora and debate the pros and cons of the bill. Only a homegrown debate engaged in by proponents and oppositors will help explain the bill to the people here, especially those who will be affected by the changes if these are eventually approved and passed into law.

After all, any decision involving the districts, whether re-distributing or creating, should not be so much a political issue but a matter of what would be best for the development of the province and its people.

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