EDITORIAL - JVR should wear another hat

Ever since he assumed office as mayor of Talisay City, the man they call JVR has sparked more high-profile controversies than any achievement worthy of note. But holding a second graduation for graduates of the city-run Talisay City College just to prove a personal point takes the cake.

The college has two presidents because JVR has appointed another to replace the sitting one. But that is not the point. Besides, the matter of who eventually gets to head the college has now been submitted to the judicial process.

The point really is the insensitivity of JVR and his failure to discern which is for the greater good. When the president he appointed decided to hold another graduation ceremony, JVR should have looked beyond the quarrel he himself caused and asked himself if it was in the best interest of Talisaynons to go along with it.

Having a second graduation ceremony adds more to the expenses of all parties concerned, not to mention the physical hassle and stress it brings to bear on those who must take part in the charade, which serves no loftier purpose than to massage certain bruised egos.

On the other hand, it makes a laughing stock of all Talisaynons, regardless of whether they had anything to do with the stupid exercise or not. Any outsider who gets to know anybody from Talisay will likely ask the Talisaynon what is going on in that college.

That question can be coated with politeness, but there will always be a tinge of ridicule and sarcasm underneath it, and for good reason. Having a second graduation is simply bad p.r. and no amount of good p.r. can ever bring back the original.

So far, JVR has been acting with too much self-interest in mind. It is time he changes his cowboy hat for another -- like a mayor's turban, for instance, if there is one. In other words, there has to be a point in his short three-year term where he decides to become the mayor for all, not just a cowboy before a mirror.

Talisay City is an emerging and progressive city, with vast potential for growth and development. In the right hands, it can give any other city in Cebu, and the whole country for that matter, a run for their money. In the wrong hands, it can only stumble in the dust and lag far behind, wondering what happened.