By Gonzalo Duque

 

I missed to write my column last week because I was in the hospital for my routine executive check-up, checking on my diabetes, heart condition, if I have lipid, liver and kidney disorders, neurological disease, and diseases in the colon and other body organs, including my ears and teeth. Mind you, I also had to go through enhancement of my already handsome face.

After all those tests by some of the most experienced health professionals in Dagupan and in the entire country, thank God, I was given a clean bill of health.

On a scale of 1 to 100, methinks I made it to 85, which was good enough. But two of my doctors forewarned me of my sugar level because once out of control it would aggravate my diabetes and kidney disease. Then, Dr. Benedict Bernal found me to be hard of hearing, so he suggested I wear a hearing aid. Now, I’m able to talk a little slowly but clearly.

So allow me to thank him and the other doctors who extended me the best professional help: Dr. Viven Villaflor, Dr. Gozar Duque, Dr. Isabelita Siapno, Dr. Philip Oliva (who I apologized to for one sad incident in the past), Dr. Bernadette Malvar Villaflor, Dr. Gene Torres, Dr. Daniel Ynson, Dr. Luis Buencamino, Dr. Orlando del Rosario, and Dr. Jorreca Abcede.

Thanks, too, to Dr. Viado who put me in the CT Scan. And also to smiling nurses as well as other health professionals at the Dagupan Doctors Villaflor Memorial Hospital where I got the best tender loving care! And mind you, it came with the least charges.

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There are good programs and projects in Dagupan where, irrespective of who’s the mayor, should and must continue. Take the $11 million Waste to Worth project, being funded by Procter & Gamble and to be built by Sure Global Innovations Inc. headed by Ms. Jillian Boughton.

But this was torpedoed by then Mayor Brian Lim even if the project was already issued the Environmental Compliance Certificate (ECC) by DENR, only because it was initiated by her predecessor, Belen Fernandez. 

Now that Belen is back at the helm, she is determined to restore the W2W and finally put to end the decades old garbage dumpsite in Bonuan and turn that into a beautiful tree park.

Imagine, if Brian continued that project, he could have stolen the credit of putting the W2W project in place, even if it was Belen who conceived and negotiated for the project when she was invited in Chile to sit down with world’s top officials, including Prince Charles of Great Britain in a World Ocean Convention.

Here comes the construction of the new city hall complex initiated by Brian during the dying days of his administration. I heard that construction of this project, which was not well studied, has stopped or is proceeding at a very slow pace.  It seems Belen is hesitant to continue it noting the impact of the three-storey building, whose first floor has to be elevated by two meters, on the old city hall at the back. 

But I suggested to Belen that since the project was already started and hefty sums were already spent for the initial phase of the construction, she should finish the project so some offices of the city government can be relocated.

I also suggested that she picks up some bits and pieces of the flood mitigation program designed by the past administration to add to her own programs in mitigating high tide in Dagupan.  The only problem is, it was so fantastic but they forgot to identify the source for its funding. Thus, it remains a plan!

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I heard Mayor Belen made a side trip to the aborted Tsunami Hill in Pugaro last Thursday to see what she could do with the unfinished  project.

Just a throw-back, Tsunami Hill was initiated by then Mayor Benjie Lim to serve as a refuge for residents of Pugaro in case a tsunami strikes from the Lingayen Gulf. Phivolcs officials invited by the Sangguniang Panlungsod then headed by Vice Mayor Belen Fernandez, virtually laughed at the project because in case of a tsunami, the tendency is for people to run away from the sea and not to run towards it to climb the hill.

Perhaps, Mayor Belen can convert that into a tree park not only to keep the island of Pugaro green but also to provide shelter to its people during hot summer days.

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