Alaminos City Mayor Hernani A. Braganza gave tribute yesterday to the present and former officials of the city, the barangay leaders, his LGU family and his citymates for their valuable contributions in sustaining the socio-economic development of the city.
Braganza who was the guest of honor and speaker during the celebration of the 9th Cityhood Anniversary held at the Don Leopoldo Sison Auditorium, said Alaminos City will never be what it is today if not for the collective vision and effort of all true-bloodied Alaminians who supported its realization of becoming the 4th city in Pangasinan.
The hardworking mayor earlier led the blessing of brand new heavy equipment acquired by the city government through a loan with the Land Bank of the Philippines.
This equipment which will be used for the city’s massive infrastructure development program include three (3) dump trucks(10-Wheeler), two (2) six-wheeler dump trucks, one (1) excavator, one (1) motor grader and one (1) pay loader.
He likewise awarded plaques of recognition to the outstanding city government employees in grateful appreciation of their exemplary performance and meritorious achievements as civil servants.
These year’s awardees were Engr. Roland Ranches and Engr. Roel Camba (CEO); Gladys Satuito and Leonard Alcedo (CPDC); Mercuria Carambas (CAO); Virginia Francisco and Edward Villaruz (CHO); Jessica Briboneria and Eunice Hiponia (OCA); Enriqueto Serna and Carlo Dela Cruz (CVO); Ramil Rapues and Eleanor Bruno (CIO); Artemio Rabanillo (LCR); Shirley Quimado (BPLO);Rowena Cabanilla and Virge Aquino (ACL), Imelda Racanday and Eduardo Quintos (TRO), and Thelma Bumagat and Rey Livara (TO).
Braganza commended the department heads, the section heads and all the employees of the city government for a job well done.
“You are one of the reasons why our city have grown tremendously and continue to soar high,” he added.
Thankful
Alaminians should be very thankful today for so many reasons.
“Our country and the province was pummeled by powerful typhoons and we are quite fortunate that our city was not directly hit compared to other places wherein the storms left millions of pesos worth of damages to properties and worst, claimed lives,” he said.
“And that is why we must be very grateful to our good Lord,” he continued.
The hardworking mayor even cited the many benevolent entities that helped the city and its people get back on their feet when Alaminos was battered by typhoons for two consecutive years.
And for the successful celebration of the Gali’La Hundred Islands Festival 2010, he likewise thanked the sponsors and city’s guests.
He also thanked all the members of city fiesta working committee headed by city councilor Carolyn Dizon-Sison and his younger sister, out-going three-termer councilor Ma. Angela A. Braganza.
Braganza noted that the just concluded city fiesta, in honor of the city’s patron-St. Joseph The Carpenter, has been very peaceful.
“What made this year’s festivities more memorable is that Saint Joseph Cathedral Parish is celebrating its quadricentennial anniversary,” added the mayor even as he thanked Bishop Marlo Peralta for spearheading the celebration.
"(Since this is a day of thanksgiving), I would also like to thank my parents, who nurtured me to become a better person, and my wife and four kids."
Braganza also took the opportunity to thank his former boss and political allies.
“I have good mentors in the politics in the name of former mayors Jun Rivera and Eduardo Fontelera, they were the ones who guided me and helped me become what I am today as a leader.”
Flashback
With a booming economy, Alaminos was reclassified from fourth to third class municipality in July 1991, the only one in the province and one of the five (5) municipalities in Region I.
Six years later, with continuous economic growth, Alaminos, was again reclassified into a first class municipality by virtue of Executive Order No. 294 and Finance Department Order No. 79-91 dated July 1991.
However, it was in 1994 when then Mayor Alipio Fernandez of Dagupan City, first broached the idea to then Mayor Leon M. Rivera, Jr., of converting Alaminos into a city due to its strategic location in Western Pangasinan.
In July 1997, Mayor Rivera convened the Municipal Council led by the then Vice Mayor Eduardo F. Fontelera, who later became City Mayor, where conversion of Alaminos into becoming a city was seriously discussed. After its deliberations, with an overwhelming support from the Sangguniang Bayan, Kgd. Orlando R. Go sponsored a resolution converting the municipality into a city.
Braganza, then congressman representing the First District of Pangasinan in the 10th Congress, filed House Bill No. 10275 in November 1997.
The said bill was not calendared for reading in January 1998 because of time constraints brought about by the forthcoming national elections scheduled in May.
In the 11th Congress, with Cong. Romeo Candazo, Chairman on the Local Government Committee, the local officials lost no time in securing and updating all reference materials that they have prepared previously.
Braganza, in his second term as solon, immediately filed House Bill No. 4898 on October 21, 1998.
The said bill was finally approved by the House of Representatives during its third and final reading on December 1999.
Braganza said that the Alaminos cityhood bid was very memorable one not only because he was the author of the bill.
“The Senate Bill was approved just immediately after the EDSA II,” recalled the mayor who was then a member of the famous Spice Boys in Congress that filed an impeachment complaint against former Pres. Joseph Estrada.
“We were on the wake of my father when then Sen. Serge Osmena called me up and said “Nani, we will have a Senate hearing tomorrow and your bill is calendared for final reading. I assure that it will be approved by the Senate.”
So Braganza and the rest of the town officials trooped to the Senate on February 8, 2001 to witness the passage of the Republic Act 9025, the consolidated House Bill No. 4898 and Senate Bill No. 2257.
RA 9025 is the Act Converting the Municipality of Alaminos, Province of Pangasinan into a Component City to be known as the City of Alaminos.
And the rest, as they say is history
President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo signed the law converting Alaminos into a component city on March 5, 2001, at the Kalayaan Hall in Malacañang.
A referendum was held on March 28, 2001 and more than 85% of Alaminians voted affirmatively in making Alaminos a city, the fourth city of the Province of Pangasinan
4th class city
Alaminos is now 4th class city and though it is the youngest and with the smallest IRA share among the four cities in the province, it has the fastest growing economy in Pangasinan today.
According to the visionary mayor, the cityhood of Alaminos was the trigger that empowered the city and barangay officials to deliver more services to our constituents and to our people.
With a meager income of just P 40M in 1998, the city’s budget ballooned to P120 M on the 1st year of our being a city.
Today, or nine years after becoming a city, Alaminos now has a budget of more or less P250 million.
In the last 5 years of my administration, I can proudly tell all of you that when I became your mayor, we were a 5th class city, Braganza stressed.
“After 2 years, we became a 4th class city. And now we are qualified to become a 3rd class city in a short period of 6 years,” he added.
The mayor again thanked his LGU family and all the officials of the city for extending their fair share in helping his administration manage the city well.
Dream
Braganza said his dream as a leader is very simple- for Alaminos to become highly developed and progressive city in order for the local government to provide better services to its people.
He also said that if the city’s revenue grows bigger, he sees growth with equity in the communities wherein the quality of life of every Alaminian family is improved.
“But we should be ready to face the challenges of a new Alaminos," he added. "We must embrace development for this will also raise the standard of living in our city.”
“I am optimistic that as long as we are united and remain steadfast, we will succeed in realizing our dreams for our beloved city.”
“After nine solid years, I am more confident today and if you will again give me the mandate for another term, I will continue to serve you best I can.
He said after his term and serving the national government, hopefully, under the administration of Aquino and Roxas, will return to Alaminos to help his city and citymates.
“There is no Braganza family name today in the field of public service if not for our beloved city.
“Alaminos took care of me and I will definitely come home and retire here and never that I will consider doing it in the town of Bolinao,” said Braganza referring to his political foe, representative Arthur Celeste, who hails from Bolinao and now wanted to rule the city.
According to insiders and some leaders in the district, Celeste had even received backing from Mayor Braganza, then the former two term congressman, when the former run for the chairmanship of the Association of Barangay Captains-Pangasinan.
“I have so many dreams and plans, but I never wished to become a mayor of the neighboring town of our city because that is a big sin to their leaders and their people,” he stressed further.
“I don’t pretend to be somebody else because I am a true-bloodied Alaminian. I am proud to be Alaminian and I will always be of service to our citymates who genuinely believed that the city doesn’t need an imported player who promise to do better for Alaminos when in fact he has done nothing to alleviate poverty in his hometown and even opposed the establishment of a commercial airport in our city.”
Valuing Alaminos’ history.
"Alaminos became a city on March 28, 2001 and every Alaminian should know well the vital information leading to the realization of the city hood dream," said Fontelera, known to many as Action Man.
“If you are an Alaminian, it is imperative that you know the history of your place of birth,” added the former mayor, who prepared a trivia questions to gauge how retentive his citymates are.
And how they truly value their city’s history.
Some managed to answer correctly that include the questions on house bills filed by Mayor Braganza, the republic act which was signed by the president and important dates.
For every right answer they were rewarded not just with applause but also instant cash prizes coming from Mayor Braganza and the former mayor himself.
Fontelera said the 9th charter day anniversary of the City of Alaminos is worth celebrating.
“We saw for almost a decade now the transformation of Alaminos from first class town into a 4th class city," he noted. "Congratulations to all of us who worked hard to realize our dream of becoming a city.”
“The Alaminos City government led by Mayor Braganza continues to take giant stride on touching the lives of our citymates,” he added.
The former first city mayor and the last town mayor of Alaminos said that Alaminos become a city and on its way of becoming a progressive city because of us Alaminians.
“Forty one days from now, Alaminians will again decide whom they will entrust the future of our city," he said. "Let us then show that we in Alaminos are united behind Team Alaminos that truly cares for the sustainable development of the city.”
Fontelera, who is eyeing his old post in the legislative department, said there’s still plenty of time to convince their citymates that this (Alaminos Team) is the right team, the right ticket that will continue to propel the city’s economic take-off.
“A victory for our Team Alaminos in May 10 is a triumph for the people of Alaminos," he finally quipped. (CIO)