Smiles over ‘unanimous’ endorsement of people’s initiative

There are a lot of "knowing" smiles from members of the Negros Occidental chapter of the League of Municipalities of the Philippines over the publication of a full-page ad showing the LMP’s unanimous endorsement of a resolution supporting a plebiscite on the proposed shift to unicameral-parliamentary system of government.

Unfortunately, 19 town mayors were not present when the resolution was passed. Two of these mayors were also known vocal objectors to Charter change and one recently died.

LMP chapter president and Manapla Mayor Manuel Escalante confirmed this yesterday to local newsmen.

"Most of us were not present when the resolution was passed because we were late in registering at our hotel. We only learned that it had been passed Wednesday afternoon," Escalante explained.

Of course, that’s water under the bridge now. But it should serve as a lesson for the handlers of the advertisement that they should double-check their claims before publishing anything.

The Supreme Court decision on Cha-cha may have glossed over the snafu but it undercuts the credibility of the advocates of people’s initiative and their claims that they have the support of the public and local officials.

What made the situation more laughable was that the advertisement also included the name of Hinobaan Mayor Francisco Bilbao, who had died of cancer at the Riverside Medical Center here much earlier.

Don Salvador Benedicto Mayor Cynthia de la Cruz attributed the mistakes to the unanimous endorsement of the resolution by 1,000 mayors nationwide who attended the convention.

She also dismissed the inclusion of Bilbao’s name as a clerical error. But that does not explain why that could have happened when the new mayor, Mary Jane Cubid, was also present in the convention, representing Hinobaan.

Escalante later admitted that Hinigaran Mayor Caroll Gunagco, San Enrique Mayor Jilson Tubillara, and Calatrava Mayor Samuel Fabroz did not go to the convention. But their names were also included in the paid ad.

Worse, Valladolid Mayor Richard Presbitero’s name was included as among those who reportedly endorsed the resolution when he had always been vocal against Cha-cha.

In short, the Supreme Court move asking the Commission on Elections (Comelec) to certify the names of the signatories to the people’s initiative confirms suspicions that perhaps all was not right with the millions of signatures used to push forward the proposal to amend the Charter.

It’s no longer just a comedy of errors. There’s proof that something is not right with the way the paid advertisement was handled. No wonder the embarrassed smiles of local mayors. The question is: How many more names had been included as endorsers of the resolution but were not present in the convention?

P29,500 in fake P10 coins

Trader Chito Patanimdagat may have to undergo some intense grilling by the Iloilo City police for attempting to pay off gambling debts with P10 coins amounting to P29,500.

When Patanimdagat brought the coins to the Iloilo Coliseum last Oct. 17, Elenita Carpio, the coliseum’s secretary, became suspicious. And who would not? Nobody ever pays a bunch of coins to pay off gambling debts in a derby.

She immediately called the Jaro police station and the police immediately invited Patanimdagat for interrogation.

The businessman, a native of Mandaluyong City and temporarily residing in the Pototan town of Iloilo, says he is a supplier of construction materials. But he did not clarify to the police whether he is a cockfighting veteran. He should have realized that the cockpit crowd frowns even on the use of personal checks. Nobody would ever accept a personal check as payment for debts.

Second, the reason why he must have submitted his load of coins to the coliseum secretary was that "the bank had assured him that the coins were genuine."

And Patanimdagat told police investigators that the amount is part of the P36,000 in coins paid to him by a Taiwanese client. He never explained why he accepted the payment in coins instead of simply asking his client to deposit it in a bank or exchange it for a manager’s check.

Anyway, that was what he told SPO3 Rey de los Santos of the Jaro police station.

The coins were turned over to the Bangko Sentral for further verification. If was found to be fake. Patanimdagat is in trouble and could face a long prison sentence, all because he apparently did not know the unwritten cockpit code.

The National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) recently arrested Yung Sun Liu, alias Asyong Lao, in Valenzuela City for possession and alleged manufacture of some P5 million in counterfeit P5 and P10 coins.

P29 B to boost WV tourism

Western Visayans recently received another piece of good news when Tourism Secretary Joseph Ace Durano said Wednesday that the national government is investing P29 billion in the region for various infrastructure projects to bolster local tourism.

Durano was the keynote speaker at the Western Visayas Tourism Assembly held at the Sarabia Manor Hotel in Iloilo and the exhibits at the SM City Mall.

Seven out of the country’s 10 most visited beaches are in Central Philippines, said Durano, but admitted that the top visited beach is Boracay Island in Aklan.

The completion of the new Iloilo airport in Cabanatuan and Santa Barbara, Durano observed, will enable the DOT to package and aggressively promote the Western Visayas region to foreign tour operators.

During the assembly, Aklan took home several awards.

Aklan Gov. Carlito Marquez said that by the end of 2005, tourist arrivals in Boracay hit the half-million mark, with P3.8 billion in tourism receipts.

Kalibo captured the Best Tourism Council Award for its Kalibo Ati-atihan Tourism Council. The Best Resort Award in the Class AA category went to the Sampaguita Gardens Resort of New Washington town of Aklan. Sagay City also received the award for Best Eco-Tourism Product. The Sagay Marine reserve has now become a primary destination among Nature lovers and environmentalists.

Sipalay, which boasts of many beautiful beaches, received the accolade as the Best Emerging Tourist Destination. Bago City captured the Best Tourism-Oriented LGU Award.