Administration party Nationalist People's Coalition Grupo Progreso candidates dominated the latest poll survey conducted by Manila-based Vox Populi recently, a press release from the group said.
The poll survey conducted on selected urban barangays around the city from April 11 to 15, 2013 involving 1,200 respondents' showed NPC-GP congressional candidate Evelio Leonardia, mayoralty candidate Jude Thaddeus Sayson and vice mayoralty candidate Greg Gasataya leading over their rivals for the coming May 2013 midterm polls, it said. For the congressional race, Leonardia got 45 percent of the total votes and his nearest rival Bacolod Rep. Anthony Golez got 30 percent while another contender former councilor Lyndon Caña got 18 percent with seven percent still undecided, the release said. Sayson got 53 percent of the respondent while former congressman Monico Puentevella tallied 44 percent for the mayoralty race, while 3 percent of the respondents were undecided, it said. For the vice mayoralty post, Greg Gasataya got 38 percent, former vice mayor Renecito Novero garnered 31 percent and businessman Vladimir Gonzales got 27 percent, while 4 percent were undecided, the release added. For the city council post, majority of the incumbent city councilors landed in the top twelve with NPC-GP candidate Bobby Rojas getting the biggest slice of the respondents, the release said. Rojas got 44 percent followed by Councilor Em Legaspi Ang with 43 percent, Councilor Caesar Distrito with 42 percent; Councilor Archie Baribar - 41 percent; Councilor El Cid Familiaran- 40 percent; Councilor Carl Lopez - 40 percent; former councilor Alex Paglumutan also with 40 percent; Councilor Mona Dia Jardin got 39 percent, youth leader Israel Salanga - 37 percent; Migs Estrella-36 percent; Councilor Elmer Sy-35 percent; architect Prospero Leonardia - 35 percent; former CENECO president Ed Guillem-34 percent; former councilor Jocelle Batapa-Sigue-33 percent; businessman Chito Jalandoni-33 percent; former councilor Wilson Gamboa Jr.-30 percent; businessman Bong Dilag- 27 percent and Claude Puentevella - 27 percent.* THE VISAYAN DAILY STAR
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“IT’S TIME for change. Time for new faces. Time for renewal. And this is the moment.” Thus intoned Monico Puentevella during the opening salvo of his party’s bid to take the Bacolod City Hall from Grupo Progreso. His opponent is Vice Mayor Jude Thaddeus Sayson for mayor.
Change as a political battle cry is of course, an imitation of the first campaign of US President Barack Obama. While it was appropriate for Obama after the Republicans had controlled the White House for two successive presidents, the copy cat of Puentevella can hardly fit into the situation similar to that of Obama. It does fit, however, for a different reason. Puentevella had been changing parties and companions every election, not because he changed the people with him but his companions abandoned him for his kind of butterfly politics. In 2001 when he first ran for congressman of Bacolod, Greg Gasataya and Alex Paglumotan were with him. Alex, though not a candidate at the time so hammered Puentevella’s opponent that we can say without reservations that Alex tirade against then Cong. John Orola was devastating. Alex got a position in the government but soon left and began to fire his guns against Puentevella, so damaging that Puentevella failed to dislodge Mayor Evelio Leonardia from the post. In the election of 2004, Sayson and Councilors Dindo Ramos and Homer Bais were with Puentevella’s ticket but soon became estranged that they left Puentevella and joined the camp of Leonardia. Councilors El Cid Familiaran , Archie Baribar, Sonia Verdeflor, Catalino Alisbo and Elmer Sy were with Puentevella in the election of 2010 but got fed up with Puentevella’s kind of political mentality – use people when it suits his purpose. Why did Familiaran (the number one vote getter) and the others leave Puentevella? It is common knowledge that Puentevella changed his allies with somebody “new” for vice mayor. Vladimir Gonzales is really not new, not a new face because he also ran for mayor in 2010 and lost at the tail end, trying to catch up with Puentevella who also lost to Mayor Leonardia. Talks are rife, and not denied that Puentevella junked Baribar (a likely candidate for his vice mayor) because of the belief that Gonzales has the money to bankroll Puentevella’s campaign. It seems that this unholy exchange has flounder because Gonzales, a businessman, is not like to pay for the cost of Puentevella’s campaign. In fact, there are suspicions that Gonzales linked up with Puentevella because the latter has the political machinery that Gonzales needs. But will Gonzales shoulder the entire cost? It seems that there is a “breakdown” within the Puentevella group. This is clear in the tarpaulin posters of Puentevella where he is shown alone with his son (until last week) but not one of the other members of Puentevella’s group. This tarpaulin has given rise to the interpretation that their party’s acronym MKK means, Monico Kag Kalaw (his son). So if change is the battle cry of Puentevella, that change is more of changing people who had worked and allied with him with other has beens. Take a look at the Puentevella’s group. Who are “new” there? His own son is not new but a repeater as the others except for three or four out of twelve. If there is change in his group, it is changing partners for convenience. It is like the rigodon de honor of the colonial times. More to the modern game, it is called, musical chairs by discarding the good ones in favor of those that convenient for the moment’s purpose or those in search of a party. Those who parted with Puentevella are consistent winners. Those within MKK had lost at one time or another. Nothing new, indeed. To me the most tragic in this election is break-up of the Liberal Party in Bacolod but I think to some extent this is providential. The state of the LP in this city exposed its weakness and thus it would be easier to remedy the situation in the future. This is more so with the group of Familiaran and Baribar who appear to have taken the narrow and straight path laid out by their party president. (Just a brief personal note: I am informing the Sa-onoy clan that our reunion that comes every two years will be held on Saturday, April 20 in La Castellana National High School. As traditional each family brings its own food and for those who can afford to bring a little more to share with others. The activities begin at 9:00 in the morning and will end at 3:00 in the afternoon. Try to use the green T-shirt with our clan’s logo. By: Modesto Sa-onoy April 10,2013 12:48 AM An ordinance establishing an indigency health program in the City of Bacolod, was passed by the Bacolod Sangguniang Panlungsod on first reading yesterday.
The right of the people to healthcare must be urgently addressed by the city government of Bacolod, the ordinance stated. It also said it is the objective of the City of Bacolod to provide a “no billing balance” in any government hospital, or public health facility, for every indigent-patient who is a member and enrolled in the PhilHealth-sponsored program. Under the program, indigent-patients will not be required to pay for any hospital expense, it said. The ordinance, authored by Councilor El Cid Familiaran and co-authored by councilors Archie Baribar, Catalino Alisbo, Elmer Sy and Sonya Verdeflor, also provides that congressional or partylist fund allocation in the hospital intended for the indigent patient must be exhausted after the deduction of PhilHealth insurance. The remaining bill of the indigent-patient will be fully paid by the Bacolod City government, it also said.*CGS THE VISAYAN DAILY STAR Vice mayoralty candidate Renecito Novero of the “Magnificent Seven” said yesterday that he is batting for good governance and eradication of corrupt practices in implementing government-funded projects in his address to the crowd at their campaign sortie in Purok Sawmill, Brgy. Bata, Bacolod City, last night.
Novero, who has served as vice mayor of Bacolod from 2004 to 2007, said that among his main concern, is reform in terms of and the continuity of the delivery of basic services, like health, shelter and education. If elected, he said he will launch “project BuSS” or the Butika sa Sanggunian aimed at providing free medicines for the indigents and senior citizens. Novero added that he is mulling development projects for the youth so they will not engage in vices, and will bat for the protection of the ecology, stability, peace and order, and resolution of the worsening traffic situation in the city. Under this project, Novero and the City councilors said they will allot monthly a certain amount from their fund from the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation and deposit it in a pharmacy, where indigents and senior citizens can get medicines for free after securing a recommendation note from them. Novero also asked his political foes to follow the rules and guidelines of the Commission on Elections, especially on oversized campaign posters. If they are defiant with simple rules, it only means that they cannot also become good leaders, he said. Novero urged the people to choose “magnificently” and “wisely” because the city's fate relies on their votes. Its teammates who include incumbent Councilors El Cid Familiaran, Archie Baribar, Sonya Verdeflor and Elmer Sy, and businessmen Hermilo Lizares and Robert Francis Coscolluela, who are all running for councilors, were present at the sortie in Brgy. Bata.*APN THE VISAYAN DAILY STAR BY ADRIAN NEMES III THE Magnificent 7 candidates led by vice mayoralty candidate Renecito Novero and six candidates for councilor will hold a caravan today, Monday, starting at the old Bacolod domestic airport in Singcang.
Re-electionist councilor El Cid Familiaran, a Liberal Party candidate who coalesced with Magnificent 7, said they will motorcade from the old airport to public markets and downtown area starting 6 a.m. to 9 a.m. Their opening salvo is on Tuesday at Barangay Bata. They will be joined by their die hard supporters. The Magnificent 7 commits to uphold and practice sincerity, integrity, simplicity, transparency, honesty, accountability and truth as magnificent virtues for good governance,” Novero earlier said. The Magnificent 7 is composed of Novero and reelectionists Councilors Sonya Verdeflor, Archie Baribar, El Cid Familiaran, Elmer Sy, Rocky Lizares, and Bobby Coscolluela. Sunstar Bacolod By Carla N. Canet |
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