—Eugene Ionesco
By Alex P. Vidal
UNLESS they can provide a clear and logical excuse, Ilonggos will continue to demand a no-holds-barred and truthful explanation from minions of the Duterte administration why the $1-billion Iloilo-Guimaras-Negros-Cebu Link Bridge project burst like bubbles in the blink of an eye.
For a while, there were mouth-watering statements and glowing promises from the lackeys of President Rodrigo R. Duterte led by Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) Secretary Mark Villar, assuring the public that the construction “would commence soon.”
Aside from the recent lackluster and fallacious words of Sen. Cynthia Villar, no other official or valid explanation was given by any agency involved in the much-publicized dream bridge project.
Since Senator Villar’s ill-fated revelation that the project was supposedly no longer in the radar of this administration because “Iloilo is a progressive province but Guimaras is not. So they prefer other projects with big economic impact”, no independent justification from Malacanang was released to the public regarding the botched bridge system project that would have helped spur economic growth in the three Western Visayas islands and the province of Cebu.
Even the DPWH, the National Economic Development Authority (NEDA), and other agencies involved in the project during the preparation level were alarmingly tight-lipped.
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It appears the responsibility of telling the Ilonggos why the project was supposedly scrapped had fallen by accident on the shoulders of Senator Villar, the DPWH secretary’s mother.
It was Mommy Cynthia who “accidentally” disclosed that the project “was no longer a priority” after being asked by journalists last week.
It looked like Mommy Cynthia beat beloved son Mark to the draw in as a far as the release of any voluntary information about the status of the multimillion bridge project was concerned.
In the first place, it was beloved son Mark’s primordial responsibility and obligation to be truthful and transparent.
Whether the bridge project was already dead or still alive, beloved son Mark should not have waited for Mommy Cynthia to deliver the news—good or bad—ahead of him.
It was beloved son Mark who, for three years, had sweet-talked the Ilonggos; excited Guimarasnons and residents of Iloilo’s 42 municipalities and one component city, as well as the people in the provinces of Antique, Aklan, and Capiz had been tantalized, hopeful that a gigantic bridge project that promised link four islands in the two regions would finally unravel at least “before the end of the Duterte administration.”
Mommy Cynthia was not in the program from the very start.
She only entered the scene to tell all and sundry about the project’s sordid ending albeit without offering any concrete and credible details.
Did Mommy Cynthia intend to take the heat away from beloved son Mark?
For the meantime, we are waiting for the official explanation from beloved son Mark or from the Malacanang.
They can’t just turn the Ilonggos’ dream into a nightmare by pretending nobody’s interested to know what went wrong.
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Email sent to me by New York Governor Andrew Cuomo dated May 4, 2021, which he also shared to other New Yorkers:
Dear Alex, New Yorkers have embodied the spirit of New York Tough, and it shows in our numbers more and more every day. As the rate of vaccinations increases and the rate of infection decreases we are able to accelerate the reopening. I urge those who have yet to be vaccinated to protect themselves, their families and their communities and to roll up your sleeve. We are all in this together.
Here's what else you need to know tonight:
1. COVID hospitalizations are at 2,573. Of the 96,747 tests reported yesterday, 2,173, or 2.25 percent, were positive. The 7-day average percent positivity rate was 1.76 percent. There were 625 patients in ICU yesterday, up 12 from the previous day. Of them, 381 are intubated. Sadly, we lost 39 New Yorkers to the virus.
2. As of 11am this morning, 46.9 percent of New Yorkers have completed at least one vaccine dose. Over the past 24 hours, 147,654 total doses have been administered. To date, New York has administered 15,882,018 total doses with 35.7 percent of New Yorkers completing their vaccine series. See data by region and county on the State's Vaccine Tracker: ny.gov/vaccinetracker.
3. The Citizen Public Health Training Course will open on Wednesday, May 5. Enroll for free and learn about preparedness for and prevention of public health emergencies from top experts from Cornell University. After the course, you will be able to take an active role in helping your community rebuild from the effects of COVID-19, and serve as part of an informed network that can be mobilized in the future to help respond to public health emergencies.
4. New York State announced a historic investment in child care. The COVID pandemic only exacerbated the problems and inequities that already existed in our society, and as we continue to rebuild and recover, child care will play a critical role in getting New Yorkers back to work and reopening our economy. The investments included in the year's budget will help support both working families and the child care providers that have been so essential during these unprecedented times.
Tonight's "Deep Breath Moment": A Texas woman who served as a school custodian is now a much-loved teacher at the same school. Wanda Smith worked long hours as a bus monitor and then a custodian for the Brenham Elementary School in Texas, but she never lost sight of her dream of eventually becoming a teacher. After nine years, during which she attended night classes, Smith earned a bachelor's degree and became a certified teacher. She returned to Brenham Elementary to teach first grade and has inspired her students and the entire community. "When I stand in front of my classroom, I am living my dream" she told The Today Show.
Ever Upward, Governor Andrew M. Cuomo
(The author, who is now based in New York City, used to be the editor of two dailies in Iloilo)
