Playing with Fire
A toast to Gov. Spines and Pangasinense
By Gonzalo Duque
WE just made history. Hooray!
Last Friday’s regular session of the Sangguniang Panlalawigan was not an ordinary day, if you ask us. It was on that day when Gov. Amado T. Espino, Jr., who is described by Mayor Amado Perez as “the best governor Pangasinan has ever had” signed Provincial Ordinance No. 143-2010, declaring and citing April 5, 1580 as the official founding day of Pangasinan.
We wish to thank him for his faith in us, in leading the special committee that did the “painstaking” research and study in rummaging through huge bodies of facts that would lead us to establishing the foundation date of our beloved province.
No, we did it not to belittle the earlier date, November l3, as Pangasinan Day, being the birthday of the late Speaker Eugenio Perez Sr., father in law of Congressman Joe de Venecia Jr.
We merely sought to put things in their proper places, because at the time Perez Day was being observed this province has not yet produced a public official with a higher position. General Fidel V. Ramos was not elected president yet. Ditto with Gloria Macapagal Arroyo. Who knows, we might produce someday a president of the United Nations, say, in the person of Joe de Venecia whose global ambitions we know.
So what we sought was a date that transcends personalities. The first guy we sought to reflect on this is our neighbor columnist Jun Velasco who advised us to use this column to drumbeat the idea. That’s what we did. We received many reactions, mostly encouraging, a few were critical.
Next, we sought the views of the governor thru Provincial Administrator Raffy Baraan. The idea was picked up later by Board Member Alfie Bince who wasted no time to get the board on the matter.
Our university cultural committee began to work in collaboration with the provincial committee, which we co-chair with Manong Alfie.
When we buckled down to work, scheduling a series of meetings, several “foundation dates” were suggested. Discussions and debates raged. There was even a move for the province to send a research/study team to Spain for this purpose. But since the world has shrunk to a village, the idea was shelved.
Knowing the value, the significance and impact of the idea, Governor Espino issued Executive Order No. 24-2009 creating the committee composed of historians, researches, and members of the academe and media, representatives of different historical associations and government departments of the province to establish the chartering of Pangasinan.
Said ordinance would identify the founding day or the beginning of existence of every local government unit, an important undertaking, we thought in the enrichment of its cultural and historical heritage.
It’s sad that there was no serious effort made in the past to undertake this. Now the dream of Pangasinan leaders, historians, researchers, academicians, educators and other sectors of the society have come to reality.
Irrespective of political affiliation, we are now united with the thought that we now know the real ‘Agew na Pangasinan’ even as we thank the governor for trusting with full confidence our committee.
Apropos to this effort, our committee has just coughed up a tougher but exciting idea — the celebration of the province’s 430th anniversary. Ok, so, partners in the historic work, hind pa tayo tapos. Another one begs all of us to roll our sleeves once more en route to the maiden celebration of our foundation anniversary.
No doubt, the happiest guy should be the governor because it was in his term as governor that this historical event has been achieved. He remarked rather excitedly that the event was like finding a long-lost birth or baptismal certificate.
The 6th Sangguniang Panlalawigan feels the same, says Vice Gov. Marlyn Agabas, for having been a part in the passage of the historical and memorable ordinance, making her chuckle, “Kumpleto na po ang pagkatao ng ating lalawigan kasi alam na natin kung kailan sya ipinanganak.”.
Our partner, Board Member and Committee Vice-Chairman Alfie paid tribute to Guv’nor Spines and we quote: “This is the first time that a leader of the province had the courage and the vision to come up with the province’s founding day of the province. It’s now part of history and will be written in history books.
Amen.
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