DAGUPAN CITY — They belong to the opposite sides of the political fence. Lingayen-Dagupan Archbishop Oscar Cruz is a vocal critic of the Arroyo administration, while Speaker Jose de Venecia is a staunch ally of President Arroyo.
But they don’t let their differing political beliefs destroy their personal relationship. In fact, even if Cruz led rallies here against the administration, the most recent one against Charter change, whose main architect was, incidentally, De Venecia, the two have exchanged pleasantries without pretense.
For a time, however, these two leaders had not been communicating with each other, especially at the height of the Cha-cha debate. Until they met and talked lengthily the other day, thanks to De Venecia’s wife, Gina, who had arranged the meeting that lasted for more than one hour.
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DAGUPAN CITY – A showdown between Speaker Jose De Venecia and Mayor Benjamin Lim in the congressional race here remains a big possibility after the name of Lim’s son, Bryan, floated here as the likely mayoralty candidate in the May elections.
But Lim said he is still in the process of consultations and he will make his announcement at the proper time.
“I have been getting encouragement from many of our local leaders in the district, mostly [from those] outside Dagupan, telling me that there has to be an alternative candidate in the district,” Lim said.
This city and the towns of Mangaldan, San Fabian, San Jacinto and Manaoag belong to Pangasinan’s fourth district where De Venecia has been congressman for two consecutive terms since 2001.
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DAGUPAN City – The Provincial Elections Office here has declared at least three towns and one city in Pangasinan as possible hot spots in the coming May national and local elections.
Provincial elections officer Reddy Balabar said San Nicolas in the sixth district is a potencial candidate for Commission on Elections control owing to its history of violent incidents in the past elections.
These incidents include the slayings of former San Nicolas Mayor Conrado Rodrigo right after the 2004 elections; farmer militant leader Jose Doton and some of the leaders and followers of the protagonists in the 2004 elections, Mayor Leoncio Saldivar and former Mayor Chistopher Jones Rodrigo.
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LINGAYEN — The rebuilt Domalandan Bridge here was inaugurated and opened again to motorists after almost six years of reconstruction work.
President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo led the inauguration rites. She was assisted by House Speaker Jose C. de Venecia, Public Works and Highways Secretary Hermogenes Ebdane Jr. and Lingayen Mayor Ernesto Castañeda.
Present were Second District Representative Amado Espino Jr., Pangasinan Governor Victor Agbayani, Vice Governor Oscar Lambino and Public Works Region 1 Director Fidel Ginez.
After the inauguration, Castañeda presented to the Arroyo a Municipal Council Resolution 189-2006 making her an adopted and favorite daughter of Lingayen.
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LINGAYEN, Pangasinan— President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo said today the P745.5-million Domalandan Bridge here is just one of the many benefits the Filipino people are getting out of the tough economic reforms her administration implemented to rev up the economy.
In her brief message during the inauguration of the 600- meter long Domalandan Bridge linking Lingayen and Dagupan City to the western towns of Pangasinans, the President said the benefits of an improved economy are beginning to trickle down to the grassroots as part of the social payback to the people.
“This bridge (Domalandan Bridge) is for me just one of the social paybacks as a result of our efforts in improving our economy and putting our fiscal standing in order,” the President said in the Pangasinan dialect.
She said the improved economy has brought back the confidence of the international financial community on the Philippines and is now resulting to more investments and jobs for the Filipino people.
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LINGAYEN, Pangasinan — President Arroyo is now an adopted daughter of this capital town of Pangasinan.
The resolution officially making here an adopted daughter of Lingayen was presented to her yesterday by local officials during her visit.
Mayor Ernesto Castañeda Jr. read the resolution that embodies the adoption of the President as a daughter of this town during the inauguration of the Domalandan Bridge that coincided with the town fiesta.
Read full story in The Philippine Star
Three towns and one city in Pangasinan had been tagged by the Provincial Elections Office as possible hot spots in the coming elections.
Provincial Elections Supervisor Reddy Balar expressed the possibility of recommending one of those towns to be placed under Commission on Elections (Comelec) control.
Reddy Balarbar identified this town as San Nicolas, located in the sixth district of Pangasinan, which is considered as the most sensitive area of Pangasinan due to its history of political violence.
At the same time, Balarbar foresees hot election contests in the towns of Binmaley in the second district, San Fabian in the fourth district and San Carlos City in the third district.
San Nicolas is being eyed to be recommended under Comelec control because of the many recorded violent incidents that happened there in the past.
Read full story in the Philippines News Agency website
DAGUPAN CITY — The number of registered voters in Pangasinan who are qualified to vote for this year’s elections will be known on the third week of January.
This as the Commission on Elections (Comelec) provincial office said the last Election Registration Board (ERB) hearing will be on January 8 to 12. The number of new voters will also be known later.
In the 2004 elections, registered voters in the province reached 1,329,865. Of the number, 1,099,520 voted or exercised their right to suffrage.
As of October 16, 2006, the number of registered voters totaled 1,271,764. The figure is expected to increase as new registered and transferee voters are consolidated from the different local election offices.
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President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo will fly to Pangasinan on Saturday to inaugurate the newly-completed Domalandan bridge in Lingayen costing more than P700 million.
The bridge, a vital span between eastern and western Pangasinan across the Limahong channel that empties its water into the Lingayen Gulf, measures more than 600 meters and is one of the longest bridges in Pangasinan.
The new bridge replaced an old structure that was destroyed by a big flood in 1999 during the administration of former President Joseph Estrada.
However, construction of the new bridge started only in 2001 when President Arroyo took over with the funding coming from part of the yearly budget of the Department of Public Works and Highways.
Read full story in the Philippines News Agency website
ALAMINOS City, Pangasinan – Two tricycle drivers were killed by unidentified suspects at dawn yesterday.
Police said Orlando Daleng Celeste, 25, a tricycle driver of Rabago Street here, was shot dead in Barangay San Roque.
Initial investigation showed that the victim parked his tricycle at the corner of Quezon Avenue and Carlos Garcia Street waiting for passengers when an unidentified man boarded.
Minutes later, Celeste was found dead in the middle of the road with gunshot wounds.
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