Pangasinan folk laud ex-police official's accomplishments

MANILA, Philippines - The vast accomplishments in the field of farming and education of first-term mayor retired police Gen. Reynaldo Velasco of Sta. Barbara town in Pangasinan earned him the tag as “champion in public service” by multi-sectoral groups in his municipality.

Words of gratitude were issued by farmers, students, community leaders, health workers, small businessmen and other residents who benefited from Velasco’s performance of exceeding the targets he set in his 10-point action agenda designed to bring peace, prosperity and wholesome environment in the Central Pangasinan town.

In his third year as mayor, Velasco had rehabilitated the town’s irrigation system allowing water to flow into 3,000 hectares of farmlands that allowed farmers to engage in three cropping seasons a year from only one cropping in the past.

He also modernized farm practices and brought in the first rice post-harvest storage and processing facilities in his town, said Ed Murante, a farmer-leader.

School teacher Gertudes Fernandez, said that great strides in education happened in the past three years when the mayor built 288 new Victorey school buildings in Sta. Barbara, a feat that was also the first in Pangasinan, and perhaps the whole country.

“Sa pag-upo ni Mayor Velasco, buong bayan ang panalo,” the educator noted.

The mayor was also praised for bringing in infrastructure projects from flood control dikes to roads and bridges worth P150 million which was described as unprecedented in the history of the town.

Most important to the well-being of Sta. Barbarans among the public works projects of Velasco was the building of flood control dikes that have since tamed two rivers that have perennially submerged the town of Sta. Barbara for months in previous years. 

Other remarkable feats which residents attributed to the first three-year term of Velasco was the bringing in of 84 units of houses with Gawad Kalinga as its partner in building a pilot low-cost housing program for the town’s homeless families.

He also partnered with several private groups to include PCCI, Phil Export and San Miguel Corp. in setting up livelihood projects in Sta. Barbara which have started creating jobs for the unemployed.

Velasco was a former chief of the National Capital Region Police Office, who retired from the Philippine National Police as its deputy chief for administration, the number two man in the PNP.