Retired seaman from Carmen aspires to be governor of Cebu

Valeriano “Doy” Fajardo Gingco, 67, from Carmen town, Cebu is the first person to file a Certificate of Candidacy for governor of Cebu province. | CDN Photo/ Emmariel Ares

CEBU CITY, Philippines – A 67-year-old man from Carmen town, northern Cebu is hoping to become the next governor of the province of Cebu.

Valeriano “Doy” Gingco filed his Certificate of Candidacy (COC) at the Comelec Cebu Provincial Office on Friday, October 4. 

After travelling all the way from his hometown, Gingco submitted his papers at past 4:30 p.m., a few minutes before the cut-off of the COC filing schedule.

He is an independent candidate who will be running for Cebu provincial governor in the 2025 elections.

Prior to his retirement, Gingco worked as a seaman for 34 years. He served as a ship safety officer.

Due to the Covid-19 lockdown, however, his employment was affected and he chose to go back home and run a few small businesses.

This is the first time that Gingco will be seeking for a seat in the local government.

Despite being inexperienced, he made a bold decision to aim for the highest position in the provincial government right away.

READ: LIVE UPDATES (DAY 4): Filing of CoCs for 2025 Elections in Cebu

When asked why he made this decision, he replied that he is confident in his wisdom and skills.

“Tumakbo akong governor dahil sa isip ko, kaya ko. Prangka lang, kaya kong gawin,” stated Gingco.

“Bakit konsehal? Ang konsehal sa atin nakaupo lang tapos nag-aaway dun waling ginagawa. Nag-aantay ng sweldo. Ang experience ko, seaman for 34 years, nakita ko dun sa ibang bansa yung wala dito. Kahit anong itanong mo sakin, answeran ko dahil alam ko,” he added.

According to Gingco, he has many ideas on how to alleviate the sufferings of his countrymen and solve the problem involving corruption, illegal scams, oil price hike, and more.

He said that as a governor, he will be able to help Cebuanos with his acquired knowledge from his many years as a seaman abroad after witnessing how things are run in other countries.

“Kung manalo ako ay talagang iapply ko yun sa labas para sa Pilipinas,” stated Gingco.

Gingco also told reporters that he is supporter of incumbent Governor Gwendolyn Garcia.

In spite of the fact that he will be running against Garcia, he said that he is determined because he wants to serve the citizens.

“I’m sorry ma’am (Gwen Garcia), idol kita pero kalabanin kita dahil gusto ko rin ma-ishare ko sa kanila yung na-experience ko sa labas na wala rito,” said Gingco.

Gingco added that whether or not he will win in next year’s elections  he will be happy and ready to congratulate the winner whatever the results will be.

To his fellow Cebuanos, Gingco urged them to give him a chance to show how he can be of service as a political leader.

“Kung may tiwala sila sakin, bumoto sila. Pero kung hindi, basta gagawin ko ang magagawa ko para sa Cebu. Syempre, gusto ko silang hayaan na botohin ako, bibigyan nila ako ng pagkakataon na makapanglingkos sa atin dito sa Cebu,” he stated.

A few hours before Gingco arrived at the Comelec office, a teacher filed his COC to run as provincial board member of the third district.

59-year-old Farid Liore Baena, a teacher at a vocational school in Toledo, Cebu, has filed his Certificate of Candidacy (COC) on Friday, Oct. 4. | CDN Photo/ Emmariel Ares

Farid Liore Baena, a 59-year-old mechanic and teacher at a vocational school in Toledo, Cebu, submitted his papers at 3 p.m.

Baena from the Partido Federal ng Pilipinas is running for office for the second time with the hopes that he will come out victorious in next year’s elections.

“Nidagan kog balik aron makadaog nya makatabang ta sa atoang katawhan nga ang atoang government policy is para sa mga tawo dili kay poor the people and buy the people, pobrehon ang mga tawo aron paliton ang mga tawo. Dili in ana. Tigaan nato silag kanas, skills para naa silay livelihood… Dili nimo sila tigaag isda kung dili tuldoan nimo sila unsaon pagpamaso,” answered Baena to the question of why he chose to run for the second time.

Only two aspirants filed their COCs at the provincial office on the fourth day. 

Authorities are anticipating that majority of the hopeful candidates will be submitting their papers on the last two days of the COC filing schedule, October 7-8. /clorenciana