Grow up, Alvin!

By Gonzalo Duque

RECENTLY, I asked Councilor Jose Netu Tamayo, who is one of the lawyers at  the city council (the other one being Councilor Jojo Guadiz III), to act on the clamor of residents, civic leaders, educators and parents for  the enactment  of an ordinance regulating the operations of  fraternities in our schools, colleges and universities. I feel that it is not enough that only the media are doing all the work for this very vital measure.

You know how this trapo councilor reacted to my request? He clumsily skirted the subject, as if he did not know me. By the way, is this the same guy who came to the Lyceum Northwestern University one afternoon who begged to be brought around to campaign for his council bid?

Yes, he was the one, and my witness was Jun Velasco who was in my office at the time.

It surprised me a lot that this councilor could easily ignore a pro-people measure, which is to regulate the activities and operations of fraternities  which have gone out of control lately to the detriment of  students and the faculty and the cityfolk generally.

This same public servant pretender once came to me to ask my help again to support his idea of enacting an ordinance imposing curfew to l8-year olds after l2 midnight. As a citizen and co-chair of the Peace and Order Council, I acceeded without any qualms because it is for the good of the city.

Now, to my mind, Tamayo’s aborted  support to this measure which all the administrators, faculty, students and parents have been clamoring (regulation of fraternities’ activities) should have been an easy one had he shed  his pretensions for public service.

I remember this guy used to have a radio program which offers free legal advice to the public with legal questions. It seems to me that he must have been doing those public service gimmicks to just to get votes for his political ambition.

I must warn the public against our posturing public servants who are only after their personal interest. Because the question rises: what’s holding the Sanggunian Panlungsod from passing an ordinance to regulate the operations of fraternities?

Mahirap bang gawin yon?

This paper earned public approbation when in one issue a couple of weeks back, the issue was on page l, backed up by the paper’s editorial and column articles. Why? Because we care for our students and faculty, our city and people.

I wish to go back to my reminder to Vice Mayor Alvin Fernandez who appears to be skirting the issue, too.

Like Tamayo, Alvin accused in this paper last week former Councilor Boy Rayos of    proposing to ban fraternities on the Dagupan campus.

In fairness to Boy and the truth, Boy Rayos is not crazy to even think of banning fraternities on the campus. That would be undemocratic. Alvin was always present during our Peace and Order Council meetings. He knew as he still knows that no one was advocating the phase-out (that tricky word!)  or ban of fraternities from Dagupan’s campuses.

Why is he slamming the issue on Boy Rayos’ face with a lie that the latter was advocating a ban of fraternities? Grow up, Alvin. The road to meaningful and lasting success is not that smooth as you might imagine it to be because, as everybody knows, your illustrious father has made things easy for you.

I advise you to follow your erpat’s style, mature, deliberate, deep, broadminded, and excellent in public relations. Everybody knows that if you were not Al’s son, marami ka pang  kakainin na  mapait at maaanghang para marating mo ang togatog ng tagumpay! Get me, Alvin?

I advise you to be humble, not cocky, always with ears to the people’s feelings so that in the event Mayor Lim leaves the post to you, the city will be in good hands. As of now, maeta ka ni. So heed my advice, boy. Grow up.

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While there is too much breast-thumping about the city having earned close to a million proceeds from the last Kalutan, public attention was riveted away from what ought to be given our closest attention and concern: our chronic flooding problem.

The rains have started, and expect killer floods in the next days to come.  Have we prepared for this eventuality?

I remember catching a glimpse of Kuya Tony Manas, one of Speaker Joe de Venecia’s closest buddies here, wading in boots at his Di-Or Village which was waist-deep under water. It’s a funny but pathetic sight because floods are only enjoyed by children, not by us adults. Do we have the contingency, Mayor Lim?

The dredging of our rivers is an issue that had never been met with satisfactory success. My friend Edna Torio is right. This flooding issue should be on top of  BSL’s  agenda these days, not, I’m sorry,  congressional politicking. I must warn you that, left unattended, floods will bring about water-borne diseases like dengue, grastro interitis, influenza and the like. Exercise caution.

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