‘We don’t need more laws, we only need to properly implement them’
Amid the seeming race among almost all of the members of the Sangguniang Panlungsod to author ordinances and resolutions that would best serve as their signature pieces of legislation to better familiarize them with the electorate—especially now that the next election is but only 10 months away—a young businessman also seeking a seat in the said legislative body is saying the city doesn’t need additional laws to better serve its residents.
According to Pax Ngo, a 30-year old entrepreneur who almost made it to the city council in the last electoral exercise in 2007, the city has a lot of laws and that there is no need for more of the same at the moment.
“In my opinion, we have a surplus of laws that many of them actually are redundant, the objectives of which are merely duplication of other existing laws passed many years ago. We don’t need additional laws. What we need is only to review and revisit these laws and to implement them in a way that would best redound to the benefit of our constituents,” said Ngo, who came several thousand votes short of cracking the Magic 12 in the councilor race and delivering a major surprise in the elections of 2007.
He cited as an example the much-ballyhooed anti-smoking ordinance recently pushed by a lady councilor, the interest for which died down after weeks of being heavily publicized. “After bleeding it of every drop of media mileage that they can get from it, they simply dropped it and completely forgot about it. Worse, much-needed funds of the city government were spent for nothing more than promoting some people’s selfish political interests.”
Empowering the youth
According to Ngo, if he is given the chance to serve as a member of the city legislature, he would focus all his energies in advancing his main advocacies and those are education, youth and healthcare.
Presently, even if he is not a public official, Ngo has been busying himself in helping the residents of the city in whatever way he can with programs and projects aimed at giving them a chance for a better life.
“Only recently, I sponsored livelihood trainings for out-of-school youths (OSY) in the city, teaching them how to make siopao, siomai and other food products. These livelihood trainings are designed to give them better chances for a better future. Instead of just loitering around, engaging in petty crimes or using prohibited drugs, they can involve themselves in more worthwhile activities that could provide them with a steady income for their respective families. Better put, we are empowering them and providing them with skills to be better citizens of our country,” Ngo further quipped.
Other projects
Aside from the said livelihood trainings, Ngo also has been going around the city donating water containers to trisikad (pedicab) terminals. “With it, they no longer need to buy water individually. If they consume the water inside the containers, they only need to contribute several centavos among themselves to have it refilled.”
He also has been giving notebooks to pupils of the city’s daycare centers as a form of support to their early education.
The youthful councilor aspirant has also been organizing talent searches in the barangays to discover singers, rappers and rockers as part of his desire to help them advance their careers.
Also, he has been one of the first people to respond to fires, floods and other calamities hitting Iloilo City while also providing modest financial assistance to the family of dead persons who can hardly afford burial expenses.
For all these, Ngo only has a singular appeal to the people of the city: “Help put me in a better position to better help you. Ginapasalig ko sa inyo nga kon ako tagaan n’yo sang kahigayunan nga magserbisyo sa ciudad, ako ang mangin apin n’yo sa konseho [I assure you that if you give me the opportunity to be of service to you, I will be your true ally in the city council].”