Congratulations

“What do you give a consistent winner of scholastic awards?” a teacher asked a student.

“In Negros sir, we ask people to vote him out of power,” the student retorted.

“How come?” Because he may end up a more consistent winner in the future and leaves nobody else a chance to grab it?”, asked the teacher.

“No sir. It’s simply because that deprives me the chance of becoming the governor of the province,” was the reply.

That seems to be the same question that a lot of Negrenses are asking themselves with the news that the Negros Occidental provincial government is again the first place winner in the bid for the best performing provincial government in the Western Visayas. This puts the province in the hall of fame. And yet, this year, the province won the same award.

Gov. Alfredo Marañon Jr. is being challenged by his own vice governor, Genaro Alvarez.

Two cities of the province – Silay and Sagay – also won multiple awards at the Department of Local and Interior Local Government’s 2012 Pagdayaw Awards for Western Visayas at the Iloilo Grand Hotel in Iloilo recently.

Now, that is the battle cry of those who opposed Marañnon, he has won too many awards for the province. Let’s give the others a chance to win citations, too.

***

Actually, Lyndon Caña does not need the final imprimatur as a member of the Liberal Party by its top leaders. There must be somebody big up there preventing his entry into the group.

But local members of the LP had already adopted him as their guest candidate for the 2013 midterm elections.

And I think there a lot more Bacolod residents who are not members of Caña’s party who are going to vote for him as congressman for the lone district of the city.

I have been surprised by the many otherwise apolitical voters in Bacolod who have voiced their support for Caña.

For them, he is one who is sincere and sticks to his principles and does not compromise.

Ola Caña. We hope you can gather more votes in the future.

***

It’s simple. Eleven of the 19 persons arrested by the police and the military Friday were released from jail after they were found not having anything to do with the killing of two soldiers and injuring four others.

Eight, however, were charged for alleged involvement with the New People’s Army and their supposed participation with the encounter with the Alpha Company of the 11th Infantry Battalion in Isabela.

Three of the eight had tested positive for gunpowder nitrates. This indicated that they had fired guns, according to Col. Francisco Patrimonio, 303rd Brigade Commander.

Actually, I had also wanted to extend compassion to the remaining eight as they were supposedly members of the Bukidnon tribe of Negros Occidental. But, as pointed out earlier, they have admitted to ABS-CBN that they were indeed members of the NPA.

One of them claimed that the three magazines of bullets confiscated from him were left to him by the NPA and denied owning firearms.

KMP secretary general Greg Ratin claimed that Barangay San Agustin is now heavily militarized and he fears for the safety and security of people there. He called for the exit of the military there – but not by the NPA.

***

Meanwhile, Gov. Marañon, it must be admitted, never fails to mention what is due to another even if he or she is against him politically.

That’s what I noticed recently when he mentioned the contributions of several solons to the NOCHP. Among those he cited are Rep. Albee Benitez (3rd District), Rep. Alfredo Marañon (2nd District), Rep. Julio Ledesma (1st District), Rep. Mercedes Alvarez (6th District), and Rep. Jeffrey Ferrer (4th District).*

back to top