For PGMA, Antique's political support, sweeter than muscovado
San Jose, Antique -- There is something sweeter in this muscovado producing province than its "healthy sugar"-- at least for President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo who gave out financial support to muscovado millers during her recent sojourn here.
It is the fresh commitment from its local officials foremost of which is the promise of Antique Governor Salvacion Zaldivar-Perez to work hard for charter change. This, even as petitions for Temporary Restraning Order on signature verification have been filed in three of the six provinces of Western Visayas. These areas are in Capiz, Iloilo and Negros Occidental.
Of the three provinces however, only Capiz was able to get the TRO so far says Commission on Elections (Comelec) Regional Director Dennis Ausan. Ausan says the Court granted a restraining order for two towns in Capiz - Roxas City and Pontevedra.
The petition in Iloilo failed to get the TRO and was also totally dismissed while that in Negros Occidental he said is yet to be acted upon by the court. Ausan said that no such cases were filed for Guimaras, Antique and Aklan.
French Style
Asked how such commitment could be manifested on the ground for cha-cha, Perez says they will continue to inform the people of what benefits can be derived from changing the constitution to back up the 18% signatures that the people's initiative for charter change was able to gather in the province.
Antique has about 240,000 voters. Of the 56,621 signatures submitted to the Comelec, 44,000 have been verified as true. The Comelec has completed signature verification in all of Antique's 18 towns.
Perez says the campaign however will now focus more on the form of government that they want adopted and bring this to the grassroots level. Perez says, in last week’s meeting of the Union of LGU Associations of the Philippines (ULAP), the group maintains its position of having a French Style form of government for the country as this they believe works best for all. This form is presidential, parliamentary and unicameral all at the same time, she said.
Perez stressed that the ULAP will assert this form of government through massive charter change campaign but anchored on this specific form of government Perez explains that the people still want to elect their president directly and the french model is the answer as this too will do away with the gridlock between the two houses and between the Senate and the executive branch.
United for PGMA despite local bickerings
Traditionally a Liberal Party (LP) bailiwick, Antique is one of few provinces in the country whose local leadership is solidly behind Mrs Arroyo. Even as the province is divided between the warring camps of Perez and Congressman Exequiel Javier, both groups are aligned to PGMA. All 18 mayors belong to administration parties of Liberal Party and Lakas.
Perez who is also Vice President for Visayas of the LP (under the Atienza wing and even earlier with Drilon's) says she doesn't mind being labelled a "rabid GMA follower" because Pres Arroyo she said had done so much for Antique. PGMA and Perez's ties goes a long way. Their dads were friends. Perez's father, the late Supreme Court Justice Calixto Zaldivar was the Executive Secretary of then President Diosdado Macapagal.
Mrs Arroyo's visit to Pandan on late last month was her 6th in the Province and 2nd in said town. According to Mrs Arroyo, her first visit to said town was via a rough and tumble road from Kalibo so that one of the first projects she pushed as President was the construction of national highways to connect Kalibo to the northern areas of Antique smoothly.
For his part, Pandan Mayor Plaridel Sanchez VI declared Mrs Arroyo as an adopted daughter of his town, adding another luminary to its list of famous daughters, among them is Governor Perez herself and former Senator Loren Legarda.