MANILA, Philippines — Florida “Rida” Robes, congresswoman of San Jose del Monte, a component city of Bulacan, is a dreamer. A big one at that.
Rida dreams for San Jose del Monte to be a world-class and sustainable city.
“Our city has been awarded Most Sustainable and Livable City several times. As we always want continuous improvement, we want San Jose del Monte to be a Highly Urbanized City within this year,” she says.
An advocate for mental health, she dreams of a society with systems in place to fight depression.
Rida’s concern for people with depression stems from her personal experiences of caring for people with mental health issues. When she became a public servant, all the more that she stared depression in the eye when she had to deal with deaths of teenagers in her town.
“Depression claims lives,” she says. “In one public high school in a barangay in our town, 10 students, all teenagers, died by suicide due to mental health issues, in a span of one year. Many of the cases are related to online bullying.”
Alarmed by the situation, Rida acted swiftly and created an awareness campaign in the city about the healthy responsibilities of the residents and students to themselves. She even signed a partnership with an international NGO Sunfull Foundation to provide “encouragement and hope to people suffering from malicious comments posted on websites and social media.” The foundation also appointed Rida as an ambassador of the Sunfull Internet Peace Movement, in recognition of her efforts to address depression among the youth.
Included in her legislative projects that prioritize universal health care are House Bill (HB) 2383 — an act establishing a mental health clinic in the City of San Jose Del Monte; and HB 1497 — an act declaring the last week of August as National Youth Mental Health Week to support every Filipino youth struggling with mental health.
“Depression needs to be treated. Early intervention can come in the form of caring. It helps a lot when a depressed individual knows someone cares,” says Rida, who could have been a psychologist had she not shifted to Hotel and Restaurant Management at St. Paul College-Manila.
She credits her late parents for making her strong-willed. “My mom gave me everything — my life, the path I had to take, my faith.” Her mom was a jeweler and real estate broker.
“My father taught me to be grateful, to remember everyone who has helped me. Kahit isang piraso ng candy ang ibinigay sa akin, dapat tandaan ko ang taong ‘yon na nagbigay,” says Rida of her father who influenced her to venture into the construction business.
Her business acumen was developed when in Grade 5 she repacked and sold peanuts and butong pakwan to her classmates. In high school, she sold boiled corn to her friends. Because there was a family van that brought her to school, she made the vehicle available for a carpool. In college, she sold quilted bags and pillowcases.
Her advocacy for mental health is her covenant with the youth. To some extent, this advocacy is her assurance to her two kids and her husband Arthur Robes (now mayor of San Jose del Monte) that she will do good in public service. Arthur, is “the element of completion in my life,” says Rida.
Dreaming for a highly urbanized city
“Gone were the days when the city of San Jose del Monte was known as a relocation area and the social stigma that comes with it,” she says. She adds the city, now known as a “Rising City” and dubbed as the “Balcony of the Metropolis,” was declared as Bulacan’s top tourist destination with a recorded tourist arrival of 1,207,828 in 2022.
Then President Rodrigo Duterte declared San Jose del Monte a Highly Urbanized City in 2020. A plebiscite that will involve the whole province of Bulacan will be held on Oct. 30 — coinciding with the barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan elections — to ratify San Jose del Monte as a Highly Urbanized City.
What benefits does San Jose del Monte gain after its conversion to a Highly Urbanized City?
“It means the city will have a direct and proportionate share in the national tax allotment. The city will no longer compete with other cities and municipalities in the province of Bulacan. The increase in funds trickling down from the national government translates to more government funds allotted for the improvement in terms of quality of health, education, infrastructure, agriculture, environmental protection and other public services.
“In terms of investment, the conversion of the city to a Highly Urbanized City will attract more investors. This will boost our local economy, create more jobs not only for the San Joseños but also for people from the nearby component cities and municipalities of Bulacan,” Rida says.
Accomplished dreams
Rida says the city has been consistently awarded the Most Sustainable and Livable City Award this year. “Our city also takes pride as a two-time Guinness Book of World Records holder for the most number of living figures in a Nativity scene (2019) and largest lantern parade (2017).”
During the 19th Congress, she authored bills with national and local significance. Some of her important pieces of legislation include HB 6557 — an act providing for the magna carta of barangay health workers; HB 1498 — an act establishing the use of ecological waste to energy management system; HB 1505 — an act instituting an elderly employment system; and HB 5650 — an act providing a magna carta for public disaster risk and emergency responders.
One of the tourism activities that many look forward to every September in the city is the Tanglawan Festival. It symbolizes the torch or light that guides San Jose del Monte.
San Jose del Monte, she says, has been recognized as full member to the International Council for Local Environmental Initiative.
“Once a site for relocation, the city of San Jose del Monte is now a destination,” she proudly says.
And Rep. Rida Robes continues to dream big. *
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