By Gonzalo Duque

 

I apologize for not expounding on the executive order of Mayor Belen Fernandez last week, creating an executive committee that will prepare Dagupan’s Diamond Jubilee Year on account of space limitation imposed by our editor.

I had wanted to discuss some guidelines set by Mayor Fernandez’s E.O. emphasizing that there will be no lavish spending in this one-year diamond jubilee on account of the current economic crisis, not to mention the recurring floods and the recent earthquake that hit us.

With austerity as our guide post, I am suggesting some simple yet meaningful ways of celebrating this once in a life time occasion by holding simple but creative activities that could be left as our legacy to the next generations of Dagupeños.

However, I have yet to be notified of a meeting of members of the executive committee for a discussion on the activities that need to be incorporated in our one-year celebration of our diamond jubilee.

I suggest we incorporate some of these activities during the celebration of Dagupan Day on November 13, the birthday of the late Speaker Eugenio Perez to honor the man who 75 years ago authored the law that converted Dagupan, then a fast-rising town of Pangasinan, into a city.

We can also continue the celebration during our city fiesta in December by honoring 75 men and women here and abroad, and those who have gone ahead of us in the great beyond who gave pride and honor to the city for their distinguished works and achievements.

The diamond celebration can be extended during our Bangus Festival in April and in any other special occasions of special importance in the life of every Dagupeño.

The city can also give special awards to establishments like the iconic Sanitary Bakery that is now 75 years old last August 13, as old as the city of Dagupan, for serving us with delicious pandesal and other bread and pastries for more than seven decades.

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I look forward to the opening of our school calendar with optimism, that all our schools are prepared in meeting the challenges especially after that recent Magnitude 5 earthquake hit us as well as the recurrent disaster posed to us by high tide.

Let us also welcome the school opening with hope.  And if there are challenges ahead, we should always believe that we, Filipinos, can always survive any crisis in any kind of weather. 

The period of adjustment from the pandemic situation to a new normal had some painful consequences. Information reached us that the knowledge that our children acquired during their online classes and modular learning during the lockdown, was not enough to cover what they should have gained in face-to face classes. But I‘m confident that our teachers are skillful enough to make our learners recover their lost time and opportunity  in the real face-to-face classes.

Speaking of the opening of classes, I know it will be a challenge for learners, especially the younger ones, to go to school because of the incessant high tide in Dagupan. 

Even Mayor Belen Fernandez had to wade in flood waters on Tuesday (as posted on Facebook) while inspecting the situation at the intersection of A.B. Fernandez Avenue, Arellano and Del Pilar Streets. Belen is barely one and a half month in office.

(Her detractors made a mistake using the flood as an issue against her in 2019 since the flood happened, too, during the watch of the past mayor. Worse, the one who took over the city did not do anything to lessen the flood beyond forming the much hyped Flood Mitigation Commission). 

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The majority and the minority in the Sangguniang Panlungsod clashed anew in their last regular session on Tuesday. The minority led by Councilors Jigs Seen and Michael Fernandez wanted to pass an ordinance that was certified as urgent by Mayor Belen Fernandez but the majority led by Councilor Redford Erfe Mejia and Alvin Coquia thumbed down the measure by invoking the internal rules and procedures in the chamber providing that any such measure need further studies and require a public hearing.

Again, Councilor Seen questioned the IRP as a violation to the Local Government Code that said when a measure is certified as urgent by the executive, it would be a dereliction of duty if the Sanggunian will not pass it. This resulted in a 6-5 vote in the chamber, defeating the measure by a hairline margin.

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