Assault on good governance

WHILE the present administration under President Benigno Aquino III, for all its flaws and weaknesses, is trying its best to steer the national and local government units towards the Matuwid na Daan, here’s Dagupan gone the very opposite direction.

The new set of rules and procedures passed by the new majority of the Sangguniang Panlungsod (SP) is undeniably geared to allow Mayor Benjamin Lim, who, in the last two years, has found the council the major hurdle in his plans, more say in the running of the sangguniang panglunsod’s affairs in the remaining months of his term.

The scheming character of the new protocols is patent in the manner and timing in which it was carried out – when the target casualty was away on an official business in Manila. No different from that controversial “emergency” session Mayor Benjamin Lim called to pass an ordinance that gives him the power to pursue his plan of selling the MC Adore Hotel and lot in Calasiao owned by the city. At that time, Vice Mayor Belen Fernandez was also away on an official trip to the United States.

Fernandez, who appears to be accepting the twist in the SP calmly, said what the approving councilors did, five of them used to be her allies and still are members of the same Liberal Party she belongs to, was not just about stripping her of authority but an assault on transparency and good governance. It remains to be seen what her next step would be as she vows to continue pursuing the road to what she called “moral decency” in government.

It’s less than a year before the next election, a long enough time for the current administration to carry out what it wills. But come polling time, it will be the people of Dagupan who will then have to decide whether they want the same faces to sit in the council to represent them and what kind of leadership they want at the helm of city hall.

*         *         *          *          *          *

Koko’s call

IT is final: Koko Pimentel is out of UNA (United Nationalist Alliance), the new merger of political bigwigs Jojo Binay, Erap Estrada and Pimentel himself.  It is ironic that the political party that Pimentel had helped form sees its co-founder out of it.

Actually, Koko is out only of the senatorial slate formed by UNA for the 2013-midterm senatorial elections.  He remains president of PDP-Laban, the party that coalesced with Erap’s PMP (Partido ng Masang Pilipino) to form UNA.  Binay is a PDP-Laban stalwart.

Citing principle as his reason for bolting UNA, Koko said he could not stand being aligned in the same senatorial slate of UNA with Migz Zubiri, whom he had accused of cheating in the 2007 elections.

Whether Koko made the right move or not, the people will decide in the 2013 polls when he runs for senator again.

Back to Homepage

Share your Comments or Reactions

comments

Powered by Facebook Comments