MANY residents of the City of Smiles could recall that more than three decades ago Bacolod was tagged as the cleanest among the cities in this country. The city dad at that time was the same person sitting today as its chief executive.
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During those same years Marikina City residents had Bayani “BF” Fernando as their mayor, his first term.
For those who do not know BF Fernando, the man served as mayor of Marikina for nine years.
During the administration of President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, she appointed Fernando as Metro Manila Development Authority (MMDA) chairman (in 2002).
She told him, “Bayani, kung ano ang ginawa mo sa Marikina, gawin mo sa Metro Manila”. And the game began for the man.
When Fernando exited Marikina City as mayor, his brilliant wife Marides Carlos-Fernando as elected by residents to be their city leader (for the next nine years).
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When I was personally invited by Bayani Fernando to help him in his business ventures as managing adviser upon the recommendation and endorsement of some parties, for my first hundred days we were together daily except Sundays.
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Excited and honored to work for an honorable man, I was told that he casually visited Bacolod City during his first term. He was so impressed how clean and neat Bacolod City was. He told me that he patterned the cleanliness of Marikina to what he saw in Bacolod. He even installed streamers along the main roads convincing Marikeños to follow the cleanliness of Bacolod. This was in the 1990s.
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When Bayani Fernando was invited by the incumbent mayor in October 2005 to open the MassKara Festival, he asked me to drive him around the city to observe the traffic system. He was surprised to see fish vendors selling along the road in the afternoons outside the Bacolod Central Market. He was frowning while I was driving to see that Bacolod was not anymore as clean and neat as he once saw in the past decade.
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“Truth to say, many residents are dismayed with how disarrayed Bacolod is today. Garbage is not properly collected. Road management is poor. Traffic discipline could not be felt,” said a businessman.
“We could not feel there is leadership in this city. Who is really managing the city? We do not know,” an engineer said.
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“We heard that somebody is challenging incumbent Mayor Leonardia and that is the former Negros Occidental congressman Albee Bantug Benitez. His mother, being a Negrense, qualifies him to be a city leader,” said the businessman.
“The city needs a new leader since nothing much has been done by the incumbent. For many years, no city roads were repaired. Only these days that the roads are re-concreted but some are done with national funds, not the city’s,” said an angry retired teacher.
“Let Bing face Albee, and let the residents have the final say,” concluded the engineer.
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This column greets Maui Espejo, Mae Tamayo-Panes, Raymart Escopel, Nana Jover, Judgee Peña, June Malones, Ondoy Zaldarriaga, Doc Ramirez, Marlon Navarro, and Sandra Gomez./PN
