MORE NEWS, PANGASINAN

Lingayen’s citihood bid boosted
By Mar T. Supnad

LINGAYEN, Pangasinan- The move for citihood bid of this capital town has gained ground with support from businessmen, provincial, local and the local folk who are pressing smooth conversion of Lingayen into a component city.

Mayor Ernesto “Jonas” C. Castaneda, Jr., said Gov. Amado Espino committed to support citihood bid of this town which he dreamed of becoming a premiere city in the future.

The only town chief executive who ran unopposed due to the all out support of the local leaders and the residents here, Castaneda said conversion of this capital town into a component city is in the offing with the improving economic development the town has gained for the past several years as proven by the sprouting like mushroom of various business establishments, tourism facilities, increased income of the town, among others.

Castaneda said Lingayen is now more than qualified to become a city and can even surpass the other towns that have been converted into a component city..

Castaneda said Lingayen started from a poor 4th class municipality in 1992, then became gradually an economic tiger since he assumed the mayorship in the early 90s after what he called initiating revitalizing the economic programs aimed at upgrading the living conditions of the people here, livelihood for the poor-farmers and fishermen, among others.

Breaking what observers said a political record, Castaneda ran unopposed last May, 2007 elections, after all local leaders and politicians here had united as one and moved for the running unopposed of Castaneda.

Castaneda cited the pouring in of various investments opportunities, the rising of a number of hotels, restaurants, the arrivals of tourists-foreign and local- and the sprawling of various infrastructures in and around the town as the concrete proof that Lingayen can now be qualified to become a city.

The soft-spoken mayor has also cited the peaceful environment of the town as he lauded the police leadership under Supt. Harris Fama for their efforts in maintaining peace and order in the capital town which is one of the most peaceful towns in the country.


Gov hits renaming of P’sinan Agbayani Park

LINGAYEN, Pangasinan – Second district Rep. Victor Agbayani has criticized a provincial board ordinance renaming Governor Aguedo F. Agbayani Park here to Governors’ Park, saying its authors showed their ignorance of the law.

Agbayani, who also served as governor for three terms, said his father, Aguedo, was the longest serving governor of Pangasinan – for a total of 17 years.

In a press statement, he said the park was named after his father through an ordinance in 2005 for “historical, not political” reasons.

He said the proposed resolution approved on first reading on April 20 showed its authors’ alleged ignorance of the law as Section 13(d) of the Local Government Code “prohibits the changing of the name of public places within a 10-year period. – Jennelyn Mondejar