A lesson from Pres. Carlos P. Garcia

The party list system was conceptualized to make sure that the marginalized sectors of our society, and there are many of them, could select among themselves their representatives in the legislature, to carry their voice, so to speak. It was anchored on the supposition that they did not have access to, so that they could become parts of, established political parties neither could they compete with them in open electoral jousts. However, because they are part of our society, they had to be represented. Someone had to attend to the legislative needs of their sector. So, these sectors had to band together to elect their representatives.

The party list legislators we have in our present congress do not represent particular congressional districts as we know them, like Cebu City North District. They were voted upon by supposed members of their sectors throughout the breadth of our country and wherever they are residing. Take for instance, Congressman Pastor Alcover. His roots are in Barangay Agsungot, a mountain barangay here in Cebu City. But, in the last elections, he got votes not just from Cebu City voters but from electors in Southern Leyte, believed to be generally espousing democratic precepts as opposed to communistic dogma.

It is thus understandable that the pork barrel of these party list representatives is spread throughout the land where they imagine their constituents reside. In the example we had mentioned above, Hon. Alcover is supposed to have identified some projects of his sector wherever in the country that they may be found.

While he is not bound to pour a larger share of the annual P70 million pork barrel allocation he gets in his perceived residence in Agsungot, it is worth his while learning a poignant lesson from the experience of the late Pres. Carlos P. Garcia. I heard this tale in my elementary years.

The Boholano president believed, and correctly, I must add, that his presidency was not that of the Boholanos alone. He was a Philippine president responsible for the entire country, not just of his province of Bohol. In the spirit of fairness, he looked after the welfare of Filipinos by spreading budgetary allocations throughout the land and without putting his native province on top of list of beneficiaries.

In the 1961 elections, he barely won in Bohol. The Boholanos could have cast their votes solidly for him. Sadly, it did not happen. His province mates were somehow disappointed that they did not get a share of infra structure projects bigger than the rest of the country. They thought their beloved paisano did not love them because they were not lavished with developmental projects. So, in return, they likewise refused to pour the avalanche of votes for him.

When I traveled to Barangay Cambinocot last week, I passed by the adjacent barangays of Binaliw and Agsungot. We could only drive thru that stretch so excruciatingly slow because the condition of many portions of the road was terrible. “Ngil-ad jud kaajo”, matud pas taga Bohol, “ang kalsada.” In comparison, almost the entire distance from Pit-os to Binaliw was a breeze because Sen. Manuel Villar, for caring more for Cebuanos and not just for his business concerns, had it concreted.

I am not sure if Cong. Alcover has visited his ancestry lately. There is no doubting that he might be saddled with his tasks for a constituency that covers the whole country.But, if he had gone home, he would have been angered by the state of disrepair of the road in his Barangay Agsungot. His people there might have complained to him about it although they might not be as vocal in expressing their disgust as the Boholanos did against Pres. Garcia. Just the same, the party list representative should seriously consider using a large part of his pork barrel to pave that Binaliw-Agsungot road of his forebears. He must remember the lesson learned by Pres. Garcia. After all, it is easy to justify such move as also promoting the cause of which the ANAD is founded.