CEBU, Philippines - Former Cebu Provincial Board member Bienvenido Gonzalez has filed yesterday his certificate of candidacy as PB member of the third district for the 2016 elections under One Cebu Party.
Gonzalez was accompanied by One Cebu gubernatorial candidate Winston Garcia in filing his CoC at the provincial office of the Commission on Elections at the Capitol. He substituted Rheamae Paran.
“It took me a long time to decide… until I found out who were running. I believe I can do much better public service to the people than the others. If not better, then the same, because they are also good,” said Gonzalez.
Gonzalez, 80, was PB member in 1992 to 1998 during the time of former governors Vicente “Tingting” dela Serna and Pablo Garcia. He will be up against reelectionist PB Member Alex Binghay (independent). The other candidates for PB in the third district are Pinamungajan Councilor Jeffrey Anthony Yapha (LP), former PB member Victoria Corominas (independent), Farid Baena (independent), Bernardo Desabelle (independent), Jorge Gorrero (independent), and Alexander Nunez.
A law school graduate, Gonzalez spent four years with the US Coast Guard, then as executive of an American insurance company, and then a British insurance company.
He joined politics at 55, running and winning a seat at the PB alongside with Winston. Gonzales retired from politics after his stint at the Capitol’s legislative body. He hails from Balamban.
If elected, Gonzalez will take care of senior citizens in the province, whom he said “were left behind for many years.”
“There are so many young people running, and less of the older ones. The older one gets the more experiences in life,” Gonzalez said. – (FREEMAN)