Biñan City Vice Mayor Gel Alonte’s duties and responsibilities has enabled him to push for projects and programs that he believes will benefit all Biñanenses.
Today, as he nears the conclusion of one of the most challenging events of his life – that of being the city’s “right-hand man” for the past nine years – one question is sure to pop up: if he were to be asked, what are the three important measures or programs that he championed in his time as vice-mayor, that he can consider as his “enduring legacies?”
Such a pageant-level question can easily overwhelm other politicians. But not Vice Mayor Alonte, who in his quiet yet straightforward way easily provided to OpinYon Laguna the answer to this query.
“Sa tingin ko, tatlong mga programa na naisulong natin sa aking termino bilang vice-mayor ang masasabi nating pinaka-legacy ko para sa mga Biñanense: ang pagtatatag ng Command Center; ang local pension natin para sa mga senior citizen; at additional funds para sa ating mga solo parent,” he enumerated in an interview with OpinYon Laguna.
Command Center
Even before he was elected as vice-mayor in 2016, Alonte related during the interview, he saw the dire need for Biñan City to have an effective system of preparing Biñanenses during times of calamities.
This was heightened by the fact that several coastal barangays in the city regularly experience flooding during the rainy season that, in worst-case scenarios, takes months to recede.
“Noong mayor pa lang si Ate [Len Alonte], lalo na noong dumaan sa atin ang bagyong ‘Ondoy’ noong 2009, doon ko nakita ang pangangailangan natin ng isang Command Center na maaaring magbigay ng advance warning sa ating mga kababayan sa tuwing panahon ng sakuna,” he related.
“Gayundin, nakita ko rin na kailangan natin ng isang ‘Quick Response Team’ na siyang kaagad magreresponde sa mga emergency situation,” the vice mayor added.
In fact, the creation of the Command Center, the current headquarters of the Biñan City Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office (CDRRMO), became one of Alonte’s priority measures in the Sangguniang Panglungsod when he took office as vice mayor.
“And noong panahon na iyon, tumaas na ang budget natin dahil nga sa pagiging lone district natin, at ito rin ang isa mga priority project in Mayor Arman Dimaguila, so naisakatuparan natin ang programang ito.”
Social welfare programs
Much has also been mentioned about Alonte’s role in pushing for one of the landmark social welfare programs the city government enacted in the midst of the Covid-19 pandemic: the monthly local pension for senior citizens.
As author of City Ordinance No. 16-2021, which institutionalized the payout of a regular monthly pension of P500 for the city's senior citizens, Alonte said the measure is part of his advocacy to enhance Biñan City’s social welfare services.
In fact, the vice mayor said the recent inauguration and groundbreaking of various school buildings in Biñan City, as well as his own push for the creation of the Biñan City College, reflects his shared advocacy with the city government to further promote the welfare of the city’s youth.
“Mas nakita natin ang pangangailangang ito noong tumama ang pandemya ng Covid-19 noong 2020, kung saan talagang naging challenge sa atin ang pagpapaaral sa ating mga kabataan,” he explained.
“Ito na rin po siguro ang ating paraan upang matulungan natin ang ating mga kabataan, at ma-motivate pa po sila na magpursigi pa para sa kanilang sarili at mga pamilya.”
As for his advocacy to increase financial support and other programs for the city’s solo parents, Alonte said he is “gratified” by the grateful responses from solo parents who said these programs have eased the burden of having to care for their children all by themselves.
“Sa totoo lang po, ang gusto ko po talaga ay matulungan ang lahat ng ating mga kababayan – pero siyempre, priority natin ang ating mga kababayan na hirap na hirap, pero nagpupursigi para sa kanilang mga pamilya,” he added.
New Legislative Building
Also worth mentioning is what many observers believe is the “highlight” of Alonte’s long career as vice mayor: the opening of the Legislative Building at the City Hall complex last February 3.
Aside from the major programs and projects that Alonte helped enact in his nine years as presiding officer of the Sangguniang Panglungsod, the new Legislative Building will serve as a physical legacy of the “Tatak GEL” brand of public service.
It is also a sign of assurance that this brand will continue to be of service for all Biñanenses for years to come.
As Alonte himself said during the building’s inauguration, the new Legislative Building may serve as motivation for future local legislators to perform better in what should be their primary duty: enacting ordinances and resolutions that will continue the city’s long streak of economic, social and cultural progress.
“Hinihiling ko lang sa mga susunod pang mamamalagi dito na pangalagaan natin ang gusaling ito, at siguraduhin natin na ang mga ordinansa at resolusyon na ating ipapasa ay makabuluhan at mas mapapakinabangan pa ng mas nakararaming kababayan natin,” was his advice to future legislators during the inauguration.
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