Truth in officials’ yearly addresses

 Rhee-Phrased for KaPOZoK By Rhee fer Hortaleza

Truth in officials’ yearly addresses
*( Reprinted from Global Sunday CHRONICLE, August 10, 2008)

WHETHER one admits it or not, there are local government executives who have attained many inroads – tangible or otherwise – during their first year of service as municipal mayors. But then, there are town chieftains, too, who were unable to accomplish much during their initial year!

Ergo, when the time for delivering the State of the Town (Municipality) Address comes, the latter category of leaders encounters some problems. They are a loss as to what they should reveal to their constituents. In such events, they depend on skilled assistants or writers who create a splendid and incandescent report to the people by deodorizing the mayor’s term with a lot of platitudinous words so as to make his or her term appear to be monumental or impressive – when the truth is that everything about the report is hollow, picayune or insignificant.

This cannot be said, though, of at least three Pangasinan mayors whose SOTA or SOMA I was able to hear or read and corollary to this, whose actual work in the town I have actually witnessed or proven. I do not say, however, that all the others whom I will not mention here had trivial stints. Don’t get me wrong.

Who are the ‘Three Mayor-ketteers’? I refer to Sta. Barbara Mayor Reybaldo ‘Rey’ V. Velasco, Pozorrubio Mayor Emma Zosima T. Chan, and Bayambang Mayor Ricardo ‘Ric’ Camacho. 

Undeniable, the reports to the people which they had delivered were the genuine and honest-to-goodness situations in their municipalities – not inventions, blandishments, decorations, braggadocios or chocolate coatings used by other town executives so as to cover or hide their ineptness. The three had no tall tales in their addresses. In short, their reports were devoid of deceptions.

They may not have been gifted with oratorical skills, but the honesty in their words was evident. One can feel the sincerity they possess in coming out with their reports. Events in their respective town, after all, prove that they were telling facts the way these should be aptly uttered. They are officials who are not motivated by the so-called pambobola or buladas.

Their addresses say it clearly.

They called a spade a spade – unlike some others who call a spade a crane or a kuliglig! While stating their accomplishments, they did not talk as though they had already achieved everything. They espoused the line that there is still much to be done. There was honesty in their words.

The three mayors – all of them tasting the mayoral seat for the first time in their lives – have dreams, too, for their constituents. They know, too, that dreams – in order to attain reality – require hard work. This is what they promise their constituents in the next months of their three-year reigns.

Whatever others may say of them, it is evident that they have made their marks and have proven themselves equal to the complex challenges of governance in their towns. Good luck to you, Mayors Velasco, Chan and Camacho!

*(Editor’s Note: This is a reprint of a portion of Mr. Hortaleza’s column Rhee-Views as it appeared in the Editorial Page of Global Sunday CHRONICLE, August 10, 2008.)