Governor Amado T. Espino’s
February 07, 2011
Capitol Plaza, Lingayen, Pangasinan

Vice-Governor Jose Ferdinand Calimlim, Jr., and the members of the provincial board, distinguished guests, fellow public servants, my dear province mates:

Good Morning.

Once again, we are holding this traditional annual gathering to review our performance, and to renew our commitment to continue working as one people.

Thank you so much for coming.

It’s always good to start the year with the re-assuring thought that we are one in the continual, collective effort to promote the welfare of our province and its people.

YEAR OF TRANSITION

The year 2010 was an exciting period of transition for the Province of Pangasinan.

We started the year with determined efforts, and we succeeded in establishing our historical roots and identity.

We proceeded to celebrate Agew na Pangasinan for the very first time last April 5, 2010, or 430 long years after the chartering of the province in 1580.

This was upon recommendation of the Research and Study Committee, headed by former Vice-Governor and incumbent President of the Lyceum-Northwestern University, Dr. Gonzalo T. Duque, and upon enactment by the 6^th Sangguniang Panlalawigan of Provincial Ordinance No. 143-2010 “…DECLARING AND CITING APRIL 5, 1580 AS THE OFFICIAL FOUNDATION DAY OF PANGASINAN”.

The first celebration of Agew na Pangasinan served as a rallying event for thousands of Pangasinenses who came as early as 6 o’clock in the morning and stayed up to the wee hours to take part in that historic moment.

The event was highlighted by the formal opening of the newly refurbished Sison Auditorium which, after years of being consigned to virtual oblivion and suffering the consequent effect of progressive deterioration, resurrected as a meticulously executed work of art as it stands today, truly worthy of its historical value as the center of arts and culture of the Province of Pangasinan.

On that special day, local institutions and civil society groups collaborated to put up a magnificent and unique production that showcased the significant periods of our 430-year history as a province in colorful floats that were paraded along the streets of the capital town of Lingayen.

That grand and colorful celebration culminated with a beach party and fireworks, following the presentation of the ASNA and Balitok Awards to the first set of Outstanding Pangasinenses who have excelled in various fields of endeavor, and who have brought honor to our province. ASNA, by the way, is the ancient term for ASIN where our province derives its name.

The first Balitok Awards were given to Former President Fidel V. Ramos, and National Artist for Literature F. Sionil Jose. The ASNA awardees were Santiago Villafania for Arts and Culture, Rina Jimenez-David for Mass Communication, Dr. Westly Rosario for Aquaculture, Dr. Francisco Duque III for Medicine and Public Health, Police Supt. Eric Noble for Community Service, Rodolfo Tan Cardozo for Sports, and Menardo R. Jimenez for Business, and COA Chair Reynaldo Villar for government service.

We will soon launch the search for the next batch of ASNA awardees for our Second Agew na Pangasinan Celebration on April 5, 2011.

As it was, the year 2010 marked the transition of the Province of Pangasinan from a historical non-entity, to a people now more confident and secure in its historical roots and cultural identity.

It is said that a city or province without a culture has no soul.

Similarly, as JFK speechwriter Sidney Hyman once said, “A nation can be a victim of amnesia. It can lose the memories of what it was, and thereby lose the sense of what it is or what it wants to be.”

This is equivalent to the Filipino saying, “And taong hindi marunong lumingon sa pinanggalingan ay hindi makakarating sa paruroonan.”

Consequently, we are inspired to continue the serious effort to establish a more accurate record of Pangasinan’s history, culture, and heritage.

Thus last December 17, 2010, the 7^th Sangguniang Panlalawigan, under the able leadership of Vice-Governor Jose Ferdinand Calimlim, Jr., enacted Provincial Ordinance No. 147-2010 creating the Pangasinan Historical and Cultural Commision which is now tasked to do the job.

Today, I wish to formally announce the appointment of Dr. Gonzalo T. Duque as Chairman of the Pangasinan Historical and Cultural Commission.

Once in place, the Commission will work for the inclusion of Pangasinan culture and history in the basic curriculum for elementary and high school education in our province, to make sure that more accurate and complete versions of the same are continually handed down to our children, and properly preserved and kept constantly alive in the coming generation of Pangasinenses.

I think the Pangasinan Historical and Cultural Commission can also handle the delicate job of restoring the Casa Real on Nicanor Street in Lingayen, which together with the Carcel or the present provincial jail building sitting right beside it, can serve as the Pangasinan Museum and repository of the province’s recorded history and cultural heritage.

Unknown to many, and based on the diligent research done by Pangasinan Heritage Society President, Madame Arabella Arcinue, the Casa Real, which was built by the Spanish Colonial Government in the 1840s, is one of the early public edifices of brick or stone masonry.  It has far- reaching historical importance to our heritage as Pangasinenses because it served as the first provincial seat of government in Pangasinan during the Spanish regime, and was used for the same purpose in 1901, when the Americans retained the old Casa Real as the seat of the provincial government, and official residence of the provincial governor.

The building was later renamed THE CAPITOL, following the name of the American seat of government in Washington, D.C.

As official recognition of its great historical importance, the National Historical Institute through Resolution No. 5, s.2002, approved on March 13, 2002, declared the old Casa Real as a National Historical landmark.

As for the Carcel, we will plan to vacate the same and transfer the provincial jail to a more suitable location.

The year 2010, being an election year, also served to measure the people’s acceptance of our no-nonsense efforts for radical transformation, and the strategic direction that we laid out and started to pursue during our first term.

It was important for us to know how the people felt about the changes that were taking place, and whether they approved the manner by which we were managing the affairs of the province.

You will recall that our first term was characterized by unorthodox, out-of-the-box approaches for radical reforms in the structure, management and operations of the provincial government.

We pursued an aggressive development agenda, and  envisioned Pangasinan as the best place to invest, work, live, and raise a family.

More importantly, we set out on a bold mission: to make Pangasinan Number One.

I have always claimed that we were able to move forward steadily for the last three and a half years because we were guided by a very clear understanding of the role and functions of the provincial government; we came with a well-defined strategic direction; and, we were focused on our job.  We did not allow ourselves to be influenced or distracted by political pressures and similar considerations.

We were able to accomplish so much because we dared to be different. We defied those long-established norms and practices that used to block our road to progress, those long-established norms and practices that caused this province to stagnate over the years.

By their overwhelming vote, by giving this humble representation an unprecedented winning edge of 532,000 votes, during the May 2010 elections, the people affirmed us and confirmed their unquestionable acceptance and support for our efforts.

Thus, the year 2010 also marked the transition of the people of Pangasinan from a culture of political patronage, to one of governance and genuine concern for long-term progress and development.

And so, we did not want to disappoint them.

HIGH PERFORMANCE TEAM

We started our second term with renewed enthusiasm to bring our province to continually rising levels of progress and performance.

First, we had to make sure that the employees of the provincial government remained well motivated and properly primed for serious work.

This was accomplished by our HRMO thru the regular conduct of job enhancement and employee development sessions, installation of productivity and performance rating systems, conducive working conditions, team building sessions, and improved benefit packages.

For the last three and a half years, we have increased the salaries of provincial employees four times resulting in a cumulative average increase of at least 46 % over their base pay in June 30, 2007.

The HRMO has also organized a variety of non-work activities, such as inter-office sports tournaments, healthy lifestyle sessions, and involvement in cultural and artistic performances designed to provide the employees with a balanced environment for mental and physical well-being, and to provide the employees with opportunities for other creative and physical endeavors.

For that matter, I wish to invite all of you to come and watch ASIN ED ASINAN, the maiden cultural presentation and variety show of Danggoan Pangasinan, featuring the performances of provincial officials and employees at the Sison Auditorium at 9am and 3pm on February 9 and 10, and the Gala Show at 6pm on February 11.

These are the reasons why we continue to have a high performing team of provincial government employees properly conditioned to excel in their respective areas of work.

PANGASINAN: GRANDSLAM WINNER IN ALL REGIONAL COMPETITIONS

It is, therefore, not surprising that the Province of Pangasinan has been consistently reaping the rewards for superior performance in various fields of endeavor.

For three consecutive years from 2008 to 2010, Pangasinan has been adjudged Region I Best Project Implementer, and consequently Hall of Famer, in Coastal Resources Management.

This was primarily due to the sustained effort to revive our rivers and endangered marine resources.  Our Task Force Kalikasan has spearheaded the river clearing and dredging operations under the ILOG KO, BILAYEN KO, AROEN KO Program, the coastal clean-up along the Lingayen Gulf, mangrove tree planting along the coasts and riverbanks, tree planting activities in denuded mountain areas, and continual environmental awareness campaigns in rural communities and schools.

Task Force Kalikasan, headed by PDRRMC Executive Officer Pat Orduna, is a multi-sectoral, multi-agency effort involving provincial offices, NGOs, schools and other educational institutions, students, national government agencies such as the PNP, the Maritime Police, the Coast Guard, the DENR, the DPWH, BFAR, among others, and the local government units.

The rivers stretching across the towns in Central Pangasinan so far covered by our dredging and clearing operations, particularly Binmaley, Lingayen, Bugallon, and Labrador have started to breathe with new life, with various kinds of fish and aquatic species now coming back and reproducing freely in a more pleasant and conducive environment.

Even first time visitors travelling across the province have invariably admired the pristine beauty of the rivers, with free-flowing fresh waters, and minus the unsightly, manmade structures and fish traps that used to occupy and pollute the rivers.

Now our people and visitors can enjoy a leisurely swim, or absorb the clean air and beautiful scenery as they travel by boat across the waters.

The river clean up is complemented by the Mangrove Nursery and Information Center at the Provincial Extension Farm in Bolinao which has increased its production capacity from 15,000 to 80,000 mangrove seedlings. The seedlings are distributed to support the mangrove re-vegetation efforts of LGUs and various community groups in our coastal municipalities.

For 2010 alone, we supplied 40,527 mangrove seedlings to 9 coastal municipalities that consequently planted an area of 7.41 hectares and 12.52 kilometers of their coastline.

Pangasinan is the only province in Region I that operates its own mangrove nursery.

The Center has become a favorite destination for students, government employees, and tourists who are given a first-hand orientation on the importance of mangroves in marine ecology and environmental protection.

Pangasinan is also the first province in Region I that started the effort to define municipal water boundaries, and the only province in the country that has moved to stop the processing of new foreshore lease agreements, to prevent the wanton destruction, unabated illegal settlements, and the unrestricted conduct of other illegal activities along the coastal areas, to give way to the consolidation of all foreshore areas into a sustainable and integrated development effort.

In the same manner, Pangasinan is a Region I Hall of Fame Awardee, being consistent Regional Champion in the celebration of National Statistics Month since 2008.

We are also happy to report that, under the 2009-2010 RDC-Regional Project Monitoring Awards, Pangasinan won as Best Poverty-Reduction Program Implementer, Best Regional Development Agenda Implementer, and Best LGU Millenium Development Goals Project Implementer.

Pangasinan is the only LGU in the whole country that offers direct loans to grassroots communities for their livelihood projects. Our livelihood assistance program, with a cumulative exposure of P17.288 million since October 2008, has an impressive repayment rate of 97.4%.

We have also established at the Provincial Social Welfare Office the only 24-hour Crisis Intervention Center for abused women and children in Region I.

As if these awards, and the accompanying official recognition of our pioneering efforts are not yet enough, the Regional Development Council announced a few days ago that our “Enhanced Hospital Management System” was also adjudged Regional Champion for the CY 2010 Search for LGU Best Practices.

It is now an established fact that our performance in public health and hospital management is unparalleled in Region I.

And word has gone beyond Region I.

As a consequence, the Sangguniang Panlalawigan members, doctors, and other local officials from the provinces of Laguna, Tarlac, Mindoro Oriental, Isabela, and Nueva Vizcaya, to mention a few, have come in separate batches to see for themselves, and went home invariably amazed and inspired by, how we were managing our offices and extension and service facilities, especially our hospitals.

Our continuing effort to upgrade our hospital facilities, including improvements in our diagnostic capability, and the construction of more buildings to provide additional services and support facilities such as neo-natal units and geriatric wards, has resulted in the steady rise in the number of patients now seeking medical attention and care in our 14 provincial hospitals, all of which have been operating way beyond approved capacities ranging from only 57% in 2007 to as high as 190% in 2010.

Even our 14-station dialysis center at the provincial hospital in San Carlos City, which is the only LGU-operated dialysis center in the whole country, has recorded an increasing number of patients from only 45 in 2008 to 106 patients  in 2010, and is serving an average of 33 patients a day.

To enable our people to avail of our improved hospital and health care facilities, we have sustained the program to sponsor the health insurance of indigent families.  For the last three years, we have remained Number One nationwide in terms of the total number of indigent families (265,000 as of last count) enrolled in the sponsored program of Philhealth.

As should be expected, our health performance indicators keep on improving, and look very encouraging.

The percentage of fully immunized children has increased from 83% in 2006 to 88% at present.  Consequently, vaccine preventable diseases are not among the leading causes of morbidity and mortality in Pangasinan.

The malnutrition rate among children between 0-5 years old has gone down from 6.55% in 2007 to 4.91% in 2010. Pangasinan has the lowest malnutrition rate in Region I, even lower than regional average of 6.21% (2009).  It is no wonder that Pangasinan emerged as National Champion in the Garantisadong Pambata Program in 2009.

Pangasinan has registered the lowest Maternal Mortality Rate of 68 per 100,000 live births in Region I, against the regional average of 104 for every 100,000 live births.

This is indicative of the superior maternal health services for pregnant women available in our health care facilities.

This is also because our aggressive health promotion campaign has been effective in convincing more and more women to give birth in duly accredited birthing facilities, whose numbers have risen from only 19.25% in 2007 to 30% in 2009.

We have excelled and continue to improve in other fronts.

Our average monthly crime rate has gone down from 6.95% in 2007 to 5.40% for the first half of 2010.

We have expanded our scholarship program to accommodate enrollees in non-degree vocational/technical courses as well as deserving students from the cultural minorities. Consequently the number of provincial scholars has increased from only 374 in December 2007, to 2296 in December 2010, and our annual scholarship fund from only P5m to P9m, for the same period.

Our Provincial Employment Services Office has been the consistent Top PESO Regional Performer for three consecutive years up to 2010, and competed as National Finalist in the First Class Province category for the last two years.

Not to be outdone, our youth emerged as Regional Overall Champion in the last DSWD Regional Youth Encampment in Candon City last July 2010.

According to records of the Pangasinan Tourism Office, the number of tourists and visitors going to Pangasinan has risen steadily, from around 29,000 only in 2007, to 198,462 in 2008, to 316,850 in 2009, to 323,487 in 2010.

We are still awaiting the results, but we also hope to win as Regional Champion for Local Government Project Planning and Monitoring Systems, and as the Cleanest, Greenest, and Safest Province for Coastal and Environmental Management.

Thus, in all likelihood, the Province of Pangasinan will be the grand-slam champion in all RDC-initiated LGU competitions in Region I for the year 2010.

Now there is no dispute that in Region I, Pangasinan is indeed Number I.

Of course, we are aware that being number one is not just winning in contests and competitions. It is also being first, or leading the way, as we have done in certain critical areas of governance.

Consequently, no less than the prestigious Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCCI) has noticed our efforts and cited the Province of Pangasinan as Most Business-Friendly LGU during awarding ceremonies held at the Manila Hotel last October 2010.

PROBLEM: INADEQUATE FACILITES

Mostly by word of mouth of those who have enjoyed the unique Pangasinan experience, our province is fast gaining reputation as a favorite tourist destination, and venue for national events and conventions.

Last year, the Sison Auditorium and the Narciso Ramos Sports and Cultural Center (NRSCC), in tandem with other hotels and support facilities around the capitol area, served as venue for national and regional events such as the 12^th National Mango Congress last February, the National General Assembly of the Philippine Federation of Local Councils of Women last November, the 9^th Annual National Convention of the Philippine Schools District Supervisors’ Association last November, the 10^th Annual National Convention of the National Organization of Professional Teachers, Inc. last December, the 42^nd Annual National Convention of the Federation of Institutions for Marine and Freshwater Studies last December, the 9^th Luzonwide Higher Education Press Conference last February, the 2010 COA Inter-Region Luzon Group Sportsfest last May, the 3^rd Luzon Summit for Philippine Elementary School Principal Association last May, and the 2010 National Conference of the Association of Colleges of Arts and Sciences last October, among others.

Even the well-respected and internationally-acclaimed PETA Theatre group has discovered our Sison Auditorium, and had performed twice there, the first last October, and the latest just two weeks ago, before students, professionals, and others theatre enthusiasts from all over the province.

The PETA has developed a fondness for the place, and  has threatened to keep coming back for more theatre performances.

While such activities are concrete signs of our growing reputation as a convention, cultural, and sports center, the same events also serve to highlight our inadequacies.

It has become obvious that we need more and better conference facilities, billeting areas, food outlets, shops and other support services.

While we have encouraged the private sector to invest in these facilities, the province is doing its own share in filling the gaps.

Our 1500-capacity Training Center just beside the Girl Scouts Building within the Capitol grounds is almost complete, and will soon become operational.

We are about to start, in partnership with the private sector, the construction of standard and family-type cottages within the compound of the Capitol Resort Hotel, to beef up the rooming capacity of the hotel.

By the way, you might want to try our newly completed golf driving range which is the latest attraction in the hotel.

Our provincial capitol, undoubtedly the best in the whole country, continues to awe and attract tourists and visitors, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

On the other hand, our capitol beach area has become a favorite family picnic and recreation destination, with its beach sheds, public toilets and baths, and wide, well-lighted, and secured playgrounds and activity area, all free of charge and open to the general public 24 hours a day on a first-come-first-served basis.

It is heartwarming that through the constant prodding of our Provincial Tourism Office, all LGUs in Pangasinan have designated their individual city and municipal Tourism Service Officers, which later formed the Pangasinan Tourism Officers’ Association, the first such association in Region I.

There is also a growing number of local governments, and private individuals who are now undertaking more tourism-related activities such as product exhibits, cultural shows, information drives, and establishing their own product and tourist assistance centers.

The private sector has responded to the call for better and globally competitive hotels and restaurants, tour services, and even medical tourism services, as shown by the growing number of DOT-accredited private tourism establishments and support facilities from only 5 such facilities 3 years ago to 24 facilities in 2010.

Still, we cannot aggressively promote Pangasinan until we have adequate and quality facilities, amenities, and services present in strategic areas around the province.

The provision of faster and more efficient means of transportation, such as a commercial airport, has also become more urgent.

You must be wondering about what happened to our negotiations with DOTC in regard to the upgrading of the Lingayen Regional Airport.

The DOTC has allocated only P12m for the improvement of the terminal building and completion of the perimeter fence of the Lingayen Regional Airport.

But the more critical requirement is the extension of the runway by at least 200 meters to accommodate bigger planes and commercial flights, and consequently enhance our competitive position as a preferred investment area, tourist destination, and convention center.

Since the strategic development of the province depends to a certain extent on the upgrading and commercial operation of this vital transport facility, we are now seriously considering the option to contribute counterpart funds to secure the right-of-way for the additional stretch of the runway.  For that matter, we have initiated talks with the owners of the adjoining lots for the purpose.

POVERTY STILL OUR OVERRIDING CONCERN

In spite of the significant gains that we have already achieved, the provision of more investment opportunities, the creation of jobs and livelihood activities for the people, the reduction of the incidence of poverty among the people, on top of peace and order, health care, and other basic services, have always been, and remain as, our overriding concern in the Province of Pangasinan.

But we cannot go very far unless we have vital infrastructures and service facilities such as the airport, a commercial seaport, and industrial or economic zones present within the province.

We realize however that we don’t have absolute control over some projects and activities where there are other players and partners involved.

In the case of the Sual Port project, the DOTC had awarded Phase I of said project as early as December 2009. But nothing much was done for the entire year 2010 because of administrative complications that cropped up due to necessary revisions that were made to correct basic errors in the original plan.

As for the eco-tourism zone, we found out that the Korean investors are very meticulous with technical details, and very careful with their funds.

Nonetheless, after more than five months of meetings and technical discussions, we finally agreed to undertake, under a BOT scheme, the Pangasinan Aqua City Project.

The industrial complex, to be developed by Home Ship Vehicle Amphi Port Company, Ltd., which is a Korean investment firm, is envisioned to include berthing facilities for amphibious planes, beachfront residences, a golf course, an export processing complex, aquatic houses and fish farm, and plans to install a monorail transport system.

One exciting innovation is the provision of solar and wind turbine power generating equipment to serve as independent power source for the entire facility.

We have been assured by our Korean investors that the 50 stepping jetties designed for power generation, are now being assembled in Korea and scheduled for shipment to Pangasinan within the first quarter of the year.

Phase I, which will commence as soon as the stepping jetties are installed, will cost about $20million, and will take about a year to finish.

But we will not stop and wait for these projects to take off.

In the meantime, we have intensified efforts to encourage our people in the barangays to engage in agri-based livelihood projects, through on-site trainings, technical assistance, and provision of improved varieties of vegetable seeds, and improved stocks of fingerlings, and livestock.

Our fish hatcheries in Sta. Barbara, Lingayen, and San Quintin have a combined capacity to produce at least 2million tilapia fingerlings a year.

For the last two years, we have stocked our communal waters around the province with more than a million tilapia fingerlings.  About half a million fingerlings were sold to individual fish farmers at subsidized prices.

We have also started a loan program for goat raisers with an initial fund of P600thousand extended to four goat-raising associations around the province.

We are now exploring the possibility of providing a P10million surety fund as provincial government counterpart for the establishment of a P100million Credit Surety Fund of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas to support the capital requirements of our hog raisers and other livestock producers in the province.

The scheme is to encourage individual households to participate in economic size backyard hog fattening and livestock raising activities, assured of technical and veterinary services, feed supply, and marketing support from the association or cooperative, following the successful Soro-soro model in San Isidro Sur, Batangas City.

There’s also that on-going initiative to showcase Pangasinan as a pilot location for the Social Enterprise Development Systems in an Agro-Industrial Development Area (SEEDS-AIDA) setting, a public-private sector collaboration designed to support small-scale goat raisers, and small-scale producers of onions, mangoes, bangus.

This is patterned after a successful small farm agri-business program in India, which ironically is headed by a Filipino, former Agriculture Secretary William Dar.

In support of our rice farmers, a modern rice processing center (RPC) at the provincial nursery in Sta. Barbara, funded by a P200million grant from the Korean International Cooperation Agency and the Department of Agriculture, has been established.

Designed to produce premium grade rice at the rate of 2.5 metric tons per hour, it is scheduled for trial run by the middle of this month, and will be ready for inauguration and commissioning before the end of March.

Once operational, the RPC will absorb the production of irrigated rice farms in Sta. Barbara, and the adjoining municipalities of Calasiao, Mangaldan, Mapandan, Manaoag, Asingan, Malasiqui, Villasis, Rosales, and the cities of San Carlos and Urdaneta.

We should not forget our OFWs who, in their desire to provide a decent living for their loved ones, are forced to leave the comfort of home to seek employment in foreign shores.

It is acknowledged that with their dollar remittances, amounting to $17.348 billion in 2009 and representing 13.5% of the country’s Gross Domestic Product, our OFWs have helped keep the Philippine economy afloat.

Because we owe them a lot, it is only proper that we recognize and reciprocate them for their efforts and sacrifices.

Thus, as suggested by Board Member Ranjit Shahani, I wish to announce the creation of an OFW Desk in the Office of the Governor to assist and to attend to the needs of our OFWs and their relatives, especially when the OFWs are in distress, and might need official intervention from the Philippine Government.

MORE SUPPORT INFRASTRUCTURES, FACILITIES, AND BASIC PROGRAMS AND SERVICES

To support the economic activities and improve the living conditions of our people, we have sustained the effort to improve or build more support infrastructures and public facilities such as roads and bridges, government buildings, provincial hospitals, agricultural extension centers, water supply sources, and school buildings, among others.

For the last three and a half years, from July 2007 to December 2010, the province spent a total of P1.309 billion, broken down, as follows:  P179.166m for school buildings; P485.503m for provincial, municipal, and farm-to-market roads; P38.481m for bridges; P291.5m for provincial buildings, P61.281m for agricultural extension facilities; P60.738m for municipal buildings; P180.84m for provincial hospitals; and, P11.6395m for potable water and sewerage systems.

We will sustain our on-going programs to maintain safe and peaceful neighborhoods, provide quality and affordable health care, greater access to education, promote higher agricultural productivity, provide more jobs and income opportunities, promote youth and sports development, provide social welfare for children, women, the elderly, and the disadvantaged, and pursue tourism development, socialized housing, environmental protection and rehabilitation, and build and maintain basic support infrastructures throughout the province where they are most needed.

GOVERNANCE: A SHARED REPONSIBILITY

My dear province mates, and all other development partners, thank you so much.

We could not have gone this far, we could not have excelled in the various fields of endeavor where we are now the acknowledged leader in Region I, without your constant support and active participation in our various activities and development programs.

All of us know that governance is a shared responsibility. Each of us has a role to play; each one has a specific job to do.

The provincial government cannot do the job alone. It can perform only within the limits of its mandated role and functions.

Let me assure you that we did not get here by accident.

All of us have worked hard to bring the Province of Pangasinan to where it stands today.

We have excelled, we have progressed because of our conscious, deliberate and collective effort to reach our defined goals, and to pursue our mission to become number one.

I wish, therefore, to acknowledge the valuable contribution of our six congressmen, our local government officials, the national government agencies, the European Commission, the USAID, the German Technical Cooperation Agency or GTZ and other international funding and support agencies actively at work in our province, and the various sectors and civil society groups that have collaborated with us in the continuing effort to develop our province.

Let me especially thank Vice-Governor Jose Ferdinand Calimlim, Jr. and the entire Sangguniang Panlalawigan for their ready cooperation and legislative support, and all provincial employees for their dedication and hard work.

We have proven how far we can go, how much we can do together, if only we put our hearts and minds to it.

That is why we have to find new and improved ways and means to sustain our being a high performing province.

Consequently, we will soon invite all local chief executives, the local sanggunian, and key LGU technical personnel to a series of planning conferences designed to clarify roles and functions under the basic principles of subsidiarity, and to evaluate how much the individual LGUs have contributed in attaining our common vision and mission, and ultimately to align their development thrusts through concrete, but doable, actions plans.

We will do the same for National Government Agencies, NGOs, civil society groups, and other stakeholders in Pangasinan until all of us are really moving towards one common direction.

Indeed, if we put our acts together, PANGASINAN will soon become the BEST PLACE TO INVEST, WORK, LIVE, AND RAISE A FAMILY, and will eventually emerge as the NUMBER ONE province in the whole country.

Let us therefore not rest on our laurels, and continue the journey towards a brighter future for our children, and the coming generations of Pangasinenses.

And may God continue to bless us along the way.

Salamat tan masantos a kabuasan ed sikayon amin.

Back to Homepage