A serious redistricting flaw being done in Cebu

With the year 2019 becoming an election year, it is time we talk about politics. Apparently, we learned that Sen. Sonny Angara, the chairman of the Senate committee on local government sponsored Senate Bill No. 8511 separating the City of Mandaue from the sixth legislative district of Cebu Province. No doubt, this is a very good piece of news for the people of Mandaue now that this has been approved. With this, the national government projects will now solely be focused on Mandaue, unlike before when it is distributed among Mandaue, Consolacion and Cordova.

So the question is… is this a good move? When Lapu-Lapu City separated from the Sixth District, the Municipality of Cordova, which is beside the City of Lapu-Lapu, was a bit isolated with the Sixth District. Now it is the turn of Mandaue City to separate itself from the Sixth District, which now will be left with the towns of Consolacion and Cordova which are at least 20 kilometers apart. Mind you I’m not against Mandaue City becoming a lone district like Lapu-Lapu City… but clearly Sen. Angara did not think this properly because now the Sixth District towns would be too far away from each other, making things very difficult for whoever wins the congressional seat for the Sixth.

In my book, a legislative district should be close to each other and by legislative fiat, the Sixth towns have become so faraway from each other, it has become a legislative joke! I certainly hope that Pres. Rodrigo Duterte won’t be made to sign this bill into law until they fixed the problem. Perhaps all the Cebuano Congressmen should sit down together to fix this problem before it reaches Malacañang.

Since we are in the topic of redistricting in Cebu… allow me to tell our readers that since the EDSA Revolt of 1986, Cebu City only had two districts, the North and South District. That’s 33 years of having two Congressmen in a city that has at least a million people. Why is this happening to Cebu City, Mr. Angara? Because our two Congressmen are just satisfied with the current set up?

Mind you, during the mid-90s during the presidency of then Pres. Fidel V. Ramos, certain groups were batting for a third district for Cebu City, which they dubbed the Downtown District. The boundaries for that district would have been the Guadalupe River, then Mango Avenue all the way to the North Reclamation Area. That means most of it composed Downtown Cebu City. Unfortunately all this was nothing but idle talk and Cebu City remained a city with fewer Congressmen than other places.

A good example is Siquijor Island, which has a single congressman and mayor, but in Barangay Guadalupe, its population is more than the whole of Siquijor or even the Island of Camiguin. So the question is, will Sen. Sonny Angara remedy this unfair situation? I dare say that it is high time for Cebu City to be honored with two more Congressmen and only a Sen. Angara can make this a reality!

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We learned from a Philippine STAR news item that President Duterte welcomed the Chinese Year of the Earth Pig by visiting the tomb of his late mother Soledad, to mark her sixth death anniversary at the Wireless Cemetery in Davao City. The President was close to his mother, who single-handedly raised five children after her husband, Vicente, passed away on Feb. 21, 1968. As the news report pointed out, the late Duterte patriarch served as governor of United Davao before it was divided into three provinces, Soledad, or Nanay Soling, was a public school teacher. 

I have already written this before that this situation should give us an idea that Pres. Duterte believes in the afterlife. On the very day he won the presidency on May 9, 2016, Mayor Digong went to his mother’s grave very early in the morning to ask for her intercession. When one believes in life after death, that person is no atheist!

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If you didn’t know, Habal-Habal or the Angkas motorcycles are close to becoming a legitimate transportation system as approved by Congress. If signed into law, the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) would be tasked to set “reasonable” fares and other charges for these motorcycle taxis. Unfortunately, no one in Congress looked into the safety of motorcycle passengers.

I’ve been a motorcycle rider since the 1970s and have even raced motocross in Cebu and Cagayan de Oro and every time I ride my bike, my safety is always the primary consideration. I’ve met many Habal-Habal and Angkas riders and I still have to meet someone who takes good care of the safety of their passengers. Most of them overload their bikes and it becomes even more dangerous for the passengers especially when it rains!

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