Spines’ the Man: Ushering in a new, majestic Pangasinan

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Tapping Old Hands in Local Governance

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Asian Democracy in Focus

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Spines’ the Man: Ushering in a new, majestic Pangasinan

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Child of the clan: New blood from the old hands

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ZaNorte in focus: Above all, the people

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Impressed! I’m not much into gauging people at first instance. However, through years of honing the intuitive faculties intrinsic to most women, I have learned to trust my first impressions. A scheduled two-hour meeting on local health governance with this new provincial governor that extended to a six-hour familiarization tour of his life and mission was enough to convince me that this chief executive is certainly the best, if not one of the best local leaders we have today.

Meet Pangasinan Governor Amado T. Espino, Jr.

Although hardly a greenhorn in politics, having been an outstanding and respected congressman before his foray to Pangasinan local politics, Governor Espino is a “new” local chief executive in the sense that he had managed to bring into the Provincial Capitol a fresh, and reenergizing approach to governance that is evident, very visible, and sweeping.

He hardly has time for socializing and partying. But that time was an exemption as he wanted light moments with his chiefs of hospitals and other health officials. His aide say, our extended conversation was only the second time they could ever remember their boss making time for recreational chat. (Though the talk was littered with gems of intellectual discourse and enlightening insights on his vision and management strategies, capped with a couple of videoke numbers by the man himself.)

Governor Espino believes firmly that the Provincial Capitol is and should always be the microcosm of the province. It should be the pride of every citizen and the number one tourist attraction. This is why he transformed the provincial seat of power into a proud representation of everything Pangasinense—historic, majestic, colorful, and united.

The Capitol facelift was both befitting of these characteristics and a practical response to the need to bring under one roof the major, strategic government offices of the province, that were formerly housed in different, scattered venues. It was also a return to the promise of former Senator and Governor Daniel Maramba’s (1916-1922) historic tribute to the people of Pangasinan, inscribed on the main pediment of the Capitol, declaring that the building houses “a government of the civil state promoting life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness”.

“We want harmony in the workplaces, and now we are proud to tell our people that their elected officials, for the first time, are working under one roof,” Governor Espino said.

This singular feat, achieved in barely a year after his election, had drawn praises not only from fellow local officials, employees, and constituents. MMDA Chairman Bayani Fernando and wife, Mayor Merides of Marikina City consider the new Capitol Building “world class”. DENR Secretary Lito Atienza, who recently deputized Governor Espino as Special Environment Envoy of Pangasinan for his outstanding green programs, considers the Pangasinan Capitol “the best Capitol in the Philippines”.  And having the rounds of a lot of Provincial Capitols in the country myself, I would attest to those superlatives.

With the risk of being branded a micro-manager, the Governor, who is credited for the capture of then top rebel personalities Satur Ocampo and Bernabe Buscayno a.k.a. Kumander Dante during his most decorated stint at the PNP (He retired in 2001 as one of the most be-medalled officers in the history of the force.), maintains a special core of engineers and “action” people who report to him regularly on the tiniest developments in all his pet projects. One sweeping look at his pet list would reveal that these are high-impact, high-visibility projects that are the rocket fuel of the Espino development trailblaze—a world-class seat of government; simultaneous physical, organizational, and equipment upgrade of 14 public hospitals; standardized Manuals of Instruction for public school teachers; infrastructure projects; and fiscal reforms that saw an almost 50 percent increase in local income and a 14 percent reduction in expenditures.

As if these simultaneous, high-impact reforms are not enough, the Provincial Government purchased six new tourist buses, not only for the use of foreign visitors, but also for those students, teachers, and municipal and barangay officials from the most progressive to the poorest, most far-flung towns and barangays. Asked on the wisdom of such grand investment, the governor said that it is his policy that “the tourism program should first cater to the 2.6 million people of Pangsinan, before attracting visitors from outside the province”.

Governor Espino’s vision for his province is cut so simply that the ordinary tupig vendor could recite with eyes closed: To make Pangasinan the best place to invest, work, live, and raise a family in. By all indications, the man is unstoppable in getting things done to achieve this vision in record time.

In my two decades of meeting and working with local leaders and chieftains of the people, I’ve been blessed with acquaintances who have inspired me to this day, to continue exploring the many facets of local governance, and share them with as many people as I can. And if there is one local chief executive who is worth the salt of any well-meaning critic of innovations in local government, he is Pangasinan Governor Amado T. Espino—dreamer, visionary, workaholic, and beloved champion of a new Pangasinan.

Do watch out for more of this amazing governor. I would.

Disclaimer: The views and opinions advanced in this article is the author’s own, and may not necessarily represent the views and opinions of THE LOBBYiST, its editors, or its publishers.

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