The entire Province of Bohol celebrates the life and memory of the late Boholano President Carlos P. Garcia, who is also known as CPG, every 4th of November.
This year, as Boholanos celebrated the 125th birth anniversary of CPG’s birthday, they (and we) celebrated his life and his contributions to our country. Every year, the Provincial Government of Bohol (PGBh) holds a commemorative program in honor of the late president. This year is no exception. The program and CPG Day activities for this year were led by Gov. Arthur Yap and Vice Gov. Rene Relampagos at the Capitol attended by the members of the Sangguniang Panlalawigan (SP) and former Governor, now First District Congressman, Edgar M. Chatto.
During the event at the Capitol, Yap bared that the programs implemented under his administration are inspired by CPG’s Filipino First Policy. Yap also valls this as the “Bol-anon First Policy”.
This means that all programs and projects of the PGBh are geared towards helping Boholanos and addressing their needs, Yap said.
This is evident in the so-called “Three Pillars of Development” program that the Yap-Relampagos administration is focusing on. The pillars are: Care for the Weak, Reawakening of the Boholano Culture and Expanding of the Local Economy.
In his speech, Yap said, “If Carlos P. Garcia were alive today, we can proudly look at him straight in the eye and say that during this pandemic, we did our best to highlight and protect the Bol-anon. We followed the Bol-anon first policy in the fight to keep Bohol safe.”
Yap added, “Bohol was the first province [in the country] to declare a lockdown and the first province that vaccinated its tourism workers. Every Bol-anon family, without favoring a few, received a rice allocation last year and we have started to give out another rice allocation this year. In total, more than 375,000 Bol-anon families are receiving food support.”
“All 48 town [and city] mayors received a one million [peso]-grant for water projects while all of Bohol’s; 1,109 barangays were allocated at least 100,000 pesos and 75,000 [pesos] in provincial aid to barangays for their water projects”, he revealed.
The governor said further. “CPG would have been happy to note that for the first time, we also opened the first dialysis center outside of Tagbilaran City with an initial 12 seats in the fittingly named Garcia Memorial Provincial Hospital in his hometown of Talibon. It used to be that patients had to travel hundreds of kilometers back and forth all the way from northern Bohol towns to Tagbilaran at the cost of thousands for food, transport fare and treatment. But not anymore. Soon, we will open up dialysis centers in Jagna, Carmen and Loon.”
He quipped, “We would have been proud to report that we did not allow the Covid [Coronavirus disease] to block our efforts to help our farmers. We would have shown him that farmers’ harvests were increasing and that they were now packing and selling their own rice brand called Bugas ni Dagohoy. In return, Bohol’s dairy farmers are also feeding more than 30,000 malnourished children starting this year.”
The governor added, “He [referring to CPG] would be happy to note that a portion of the provincial government park that bears his name, is now a place where farmers food products and handicrafts can be showcased to the public, while a portion of the old Tagbilaran airport, was opened this year and will be opened again for the same this month.”
CPG DAY A POLITICAL EVENT?
The commemorative program in honor of CPG did not escape political tirades made by the staunch critics of the PGBh and the governor.
dyRD, a radio station owned by the Bohol Chronicle Radio Corporation whose general manager was sued by Yap for allegedly inciting to sedition alongside former Tagbilaran City mayor Dan Lim and businessman Emmanuel “Willy” Ramasola, aired on its news saying, the event was tarnished with political color due to the fact that Representatives Erico Aristotle Aumentado of the 2nd District and Kristine Alexie Tutor of the 3rd District, who are known to be part of the opposition, were not invited to grace the event, according to the Provincial Information and Media Relations (PRIMER) in its reaction.
When asked about this issue, Yap just smiled and said, “Dili ko kasabot ug nganong moingon sila nga gipamulitika ang event kay yearly mani nato nga gibuhat. Kung karon pa lang ta naghimo ani, mao siguro nay pamulitika, pero kung matag tuig naa tay programa sa paghandum ni CPG, dili na pamulitika.”
The Bohol Tribune reached out to Kevin Damalerio, an executive assistant of the governor for his comment. He replied via Facebook message saying: “We celebrated the life and contribution [of CPG] to our country and our province as President and as Boholano. Clearly, way pamulitika na kay kada tuig man ni. Dili pud basehan ang ilang attendance sa event sa ilang personal nga paghandum kang CPG. Karon ra sila moingon nga namulitika tungod kay wala sila maka-attend? Does this mean, namulitika pud sila niadtong higayon sa State of the Province Address nga gi-imbitar sila apan wala sila moatendir? The best way of commemorating the life of Pres. Garcia is to show it through our deeds especially on helping our fellow Boholanos. Dapat ipakita na pinaagi sa buhat. Ang pangutana, naa ba kaha pud silay gibuhat sa ilang pagpangatungdanan nga kapahimuslan sa katawhan? Why will they cry foul?”
BOHOL SHOWCASE CENTER
During the celebration of CPG Day, the PGBh also opened the Bohol Showcase Center at the lower part of the CPG Park along CPG Avenue in Tagbilaran City.
Several months ago, this showcase center was a center of public shaming and scrutiny, the PRIMER says in its report.
The PRIMER added that for weeks, a media entity (not The Bohol Tribune), talked about the Provincial Engineer’s Office who supposedly committed an error in site identification and lack of planning. This was done through its station-produced radio program citing that the showcase center as a disgrace to CPG’s legacy
Other observers said that the CPG Park must be preserved and even environmentalists opposed the plan for the showcase center because grasses will be cut. The PRIMER in its report emphasized that the grass growth at the lower part of the park is quite tall because the area is devoid of activity.
Now that the showcase center is open and is being used by farmers, micro and small entrepreneurs, suddenly the public shaming stopped, the PRIMER said.
Farmers, vendors and entrepreneurs, went out of their way, calling radio programs, posting some articles on social media where they expressed their deep gratitude and thanks to the leadership of Yap and Relampagos for giving them not just an area to sell their products but an additional opportunity for livelihood to sustain their respective families’ needs.
More importantly, the PGBh provides the showcase area for free to farmers and small entrepreneurs. At the showcase center, they can sell their wares and other products directly to consumers. The product prices are cheaper due to the absence of trading layers, the PRIMER report adds.
BOL-ANON FIRST POLICY: COVID RESPONSE
As the governor cited in his speech, Bohol was the first province to institute a lockdown against Covid in March 2020.
Today, a more vibrant Bohol is visible for sets of entry protocol were relaxed allowing fully vaccinated individuals to come into Bohol with only a vaccination card and and S-pass as the requirements to come into the province. Moreover, there is no need for a traveler to wait for the approval of the S-pass before being allowed to enter Bohol.
Yet, the new set of entry protocol has not escaped the backlash coming from certain sectors who are against the provincial administration especially that the elections are just around the corner.
Cong. Aumentado, Yap’s contender for the gubernatorial derby, posted a video message on social media asking the governor to scrap the S-pass requirement.
The requirement for the S-pass, as Aumentado said, is “nakapahasol sa kinabuhi sa katawhan”.
During the weekly press conference, the governor bared that in the regular Bohol Inter Agency Task Force (BIATF) weekly meeting on Nov. 3, 2021, the S-pass requirement was upheld by the mayors and business sector to a vote of 18 to 11.
The governor also clarified that the S-pass requirement is mandated by the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG), Department of Health (DOH) and the national Inter Agency Task Force (IATF) to be implemented in all provinces citing that its use for contact tracing is vital in the Covid response management.
DILG Provincial Director Jerome Gonzales seconded Yap saying that the DILG has mandated all local chief executives to implement the S-pass requirement.
Also, Dr. Anthony Damalerio, the chief of the Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office, posted on his social media account an email sent to him by a laboratory after verifying a real time-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) test result which was sent via S-pass system. This result turned out to be fake. His post implies the big role of the S-pass in intercepting bogus documents uploaded by individuals who want to enter Bohol.
WHY NOW?
As a reaction to the video of Aumentado, netizens flock to social media expressing their concern about his statement, the PRIMER report adds.
Aumentado has not issued any statement regarding the PGBh’s’s Covid response management ever since. Not even during the time when the PGBg put in place a lockdown. So, why now? the PRIMER asks.
Some Boholanos are skeptical about Aumentado’s statement because people smell something political behind it, the PRIMER mentioned in the report.
BARKING AT THE WRONG TREE
The Bohol Tribune asked Kevin Damalerio for his comment about Aumentado’s statement regarding the call to remove the S-pass as an entry requirement. Damalerio said, “I’ve seen the video. Clearly, the Congressman was reading a script. But his message doesn’t make sense at all. For one he said, he calls the Governor to scrap the S-pass. And the other, he said, if it is feasible look for other ways to help our people. Lastly, he said, he is aware that the S-pass is a program made by the DOST [Department of Science and Technology] and [Department of Information and Communications Technology] DICT and he knows it is vital in our fight against Covid. Now, which is which, Mr. Congressman?”
Damalerio added, “Naluoy na lang ko ni Congressman kay murag nahimong munjika nga kung yawehan sa iyang mga advisers, mosayaw nalang pud. Klarohon lang nato, he is the Chairman of the [House] Committee on Science and Technology. Naa siyay gahum nga mopatawag sa DOST sa iyang kumitiba aron motubag sa iyang pangutana kung naa man gani. Wala ba diay siya ma–aware aning S-pass? Unsa man diay iyang gipanghimo sa kongreso? Kung gusto niya mapasayon ang proseso, mangita siya’g paagi nga mahatagan ug pundo ang DOST ug DICT aron makahimo sila ug help desk or kiosk aron adto mo-apply ang mga tawo sa S-pass. Kana ang dapat niyang buhaton. Dili man na trabaho ug gobernador ng mangita ug pundo para sa mga ahensya sa national government. Trabaho na sa Kongreso kay they hold the purse of the government. Basin pud ug dili ni kaya nga mo defend sa iyang proposal sa plenary maong nagpakahilum nalang siya didto? Nangutana lang ta.”
Damalerio additionally quipped, “Ang iyang pagpagawas ug statement nakapahatag lang ug dugang kalibog sa katawhan sa iyang kwalipikasyon isip nangalagad. It opened a can of worms. Daghang tawo nakapangutana sa iyang katakus kay mura man ug gabinata. Nganong karon paman siya nagyawyaw? Sukad saona, wala man siya’y tingog. Basin tungod kay duol na ang eleksyon maong nitingog siya aron maghimo ug issue? Kung naa kay suggestion, is it mature for you to air that out on social media? Pwede man pud siyang motext or motawag ni Gov. Art or ni bisan kinsa, pero nganong sa social media man? Aron lang makahimo ug issue siguro.”
Damalerio added, “Ang angayan pangutan-on ug duolon niya mao ang DOST kay sila may naghimo sa program. Tinuod ba DOST nga nakapahasol kuno inyong program sa katawhan imbis nga makatabang? Angayan pud niyang duolon ang DILG, mangutana siya ug nganong gipa implementar ni nga programa kay sila man ang nagsugo ani. Angayan pud niyang pangutan-on ang mga Mayor ug nganong pabor sila sa pagpa implementar niini. Nganong waman niya na buhata? Nganong sa social media man siya nagyawyaw? Your guess is as good as mine.”