AS BALINGASAG town of Misamis Oriental starts the weeklong celebration of its town fiesta, Mayor Marietta Roa Abogado wishes peace and prosperity for her town folks.
The Balingasag town, 41 kilometers away from Cagayan de Oro City, will celebrate the feast day of its patron Sr. Sto. Niño on Sunday, January 15.
The people of Balingasag will also celebrate their fiesta for the first time with Abogado as mayor.
Abogado began her term as mayor only in July 1 last year after winning the 2016 local election.
She replaced lawyer Alexis Quina who is now the town vice mayor after his three-term ended last year.
“Peace and order, stability and good governance are the main priorities of my administration. I am showing the people that we cannot invite investors if there is no peace in our town,” Abogado said during the launching of their weeklong celebration.
The weeklong fiesta celebration kicked off with the start of the Novena Mass at the Sta. Rita Parish Church last January 6.
The Game 1 of the basketball tournament championship series also started in the morning of January 9. "The Color Me Run - Fun Run" was also held at the same date. It started and ended with the Baywalk at the pier area.
Abogado said because of her peace and order program, the town has already attracted some investors like Pryce Hyper Market which will start construction this month.
The Gaisano group has also bought a land in the town proper to build a mall, she added.
The Balingasag town mayor is also proud of their newly constructed bus terminal.
“When I assumed office, the former administration turned over a bare bus terminal. We finished the project and in December 15 last year, the terminal started serving us. Now it is earning money for the town and I am projecting it to earn around P5-6 million every year,” Abogado said.
She said the income from the bus terminal will bring more development for the town.
“With this development we will push for more income generating projects,” she added.
Mayor Abogado started her peace and order program during her first 100 days in office when she organized a dialogue with rebel returnees.
“I sat down with them and even went to their stronghold in Barangay Lantad to talk to them about peace and asked them what they want so that I would know what would I do for 2017 and the rest of my term,” she said.
Aside from talking to the former rebels, Abogado also talked to the army of the 58th Infantry Battalion and gave gifts to the former rebels during the Christmas season.
The Balingasag mayor also wants to clear her image that some people have branded her as a coddler of drugs when her two siblings were arrested for drug possession in October last year.
“It is unfair for me for implicating me on illegal drugs. My siblings were arrested and it was all over the media. It was unfair for me and my family. My siblings live far away from me. All my children are successful and are all professionals now. All of them have finished college before I was even the mayor,” she said.
She added she raised her children well and she has a good record as a public servant. She was a one tern town councilor, and served two terms as vice mayor before she was elected as town mayor last year.
Aside from the sports and cultural events lined-up during the weeklong celebration, Mayor Abogado will crown the Miss Balingasag 2017 winner on the night of January 13 at the Municipal covered court.
“The Miss Balingasag this year is special because we will select the winners not only because of their beauty and brains but also because of their commitment on certain community services,” Abogado said.
More than 30 ladies applied to join the contest but they selected only the best that could represent their town, she added.