By Eva C. Visperas

 

I left Dagupan in February 2023, after serving as its City Information Officer for a brief period. Since then, I have been bombarded with the same question from different people: What’s happening to Dagupan?

I feel ashamed to admit that I don’t have a clear answer. All I know is that Dagupan is in turmoil, its officials constantly bickering over the city’s budget and other matters.

I have been in the media for over 30 years, and I have seen my share of conflicts and controversies. But it’s different in Dagupan. It is worse, possibly worst at this point. It is a city divided by two factions, each claiming to be the righteous one.

One faction blindly follows its leader, no matter how crooked and cunning their arguments are. The other faction stubbornly opposes him, but is also blinded by its own ego. They clash on every issue, big or small, and they don’t care about the consequences.

Their conflicts are broadcast on mainstream and social media, for everyone to see. I have seen them myself, and I was appalled. It was not what I expected when I joined the city government. It was too much for me to handle.

One group appeared to be insensitive. No empathy, no sense of responsibility. They acted like they were in a drama, and they wanted to be the stars. They were full of bitterness, hatred, and treachery.

When will this end? Will it ever end? Will the 2025 elections bring any change? I hope so, but still I doubt it.

A lot of Marites and Marisol (mga solsol) added fuel to the fire, which never died down.

The mayors I talked asked me the same question: What’s happening to Dagupan? They told me how they managed to work with their colleagues with whom they have disagreements. They say it is not hard, it just takes some compromise and some common sense.

Even some congressmen, who have been my friends for a long time, ask me the same question. They want to know if there is any hope, any solution. I have nothing to tell them.

I had a brief chat with Gov. Monmon Guico, and he asked me the same question. I told him what I thought, what I felt, what I wished. He shared his thoughts with me, too. He told me the key to a harmonious relationship and how he wished the two factions would patch up and bury their differences.

But harmony is not within reach in Dagupan. I already sensed this during my short stint at the city hall, I felt the negative energy that pervaded the city, because the officials were at each other’s throats.

Every day, I see the pain and suffering of the people and city hall employees, they who are caught in the crossfire of political venom. They need help and services, but they are deprived because of the political war waged by the councilors.

Last week, I met an acquaintance at a mall, whose family owns one of the most successful schools in Dagupan. She asked me the same question. She said she talked to a councilor who he merely said it’s what the millennials want – conflict and confrontation.

How pathetic, I thought. How sad.

I felt the same way about my own hometown of Binmaley, where the officials were also fighting all the time.

I stopped listening to the accusations and counter-accusations of the Dagupan officials. They drained my brain cells, and they made no sense. They will never stop fighting. Even the Christmas season was not enough for them to have a ceasefire.#

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