Senator Bong Go visits fire victims of Sitio Puntod Alaska in Barangay Mambaling on Saturday, June 7. | Delta Dyrecka C. Letigio
CEBU CITY, Philippines — “Ganahan pa ka maextend imong termino?”
(Do you want your term to be extended?)
This was the question Senator-elect Bong Go raised to Mambaling Barangay Captain Gines Abellana during his visit on Saturday, June 8, to the fire-struck Sitio Puntod Alaska, Barangay Mambaling in Cebu City.
Read more: Barangay Mambaling allocates P112M for fire victims
Go told Abellana that he would try to convince President Rodrigo Duterte to move the barangay election to 2022 so the incumbent officials would serve for a total of 4 years.
He asked Abellana to promise that if his term should be extended, he would continue to take care of Barangay Mambaling with loyalty.
“Ako ni (barangay election extension) iduyog ni Presidente Duterte basta kay imong ampingan ni sila (people),” said Go to Abellana.
(I will tell the President to extend the barangay election as long as you take care of these people.)
Go, in an interview with the media, said it was not the fault of the barangay officials that President Duterte moved the most recent barangay elections from its original date in 2017 to 2018.
Read more: Duterte postpones barangay elections
He said that if the elections would be held on 2020, the barangay officials would only get to serve for two years.
“Dili enough ang two years para makita sa mga tawo ang unsay pwede mabuhat sa ilang mga opisyal,” said Go.
( Serving for two years is not enough for the people to see what their incumbent officials can do.)
The barangay elections is scheduled to be held on May 2020 next year.
Go said he was hoping that with the elections moved to 2022, this would rectify the adjustment previously made by the President on the barangay elections.
The previous barangay officials served from 2014 to 2018, a total of four years.
With the elections moved to 2022, the incumbent officials will now serve the same number of years with the previous officials.
Go said he was hoping that the President would heed his advice and give the incumbent barangay officials a chance to serve longer. /dbs