“NOVEL CORONAVIRUS is a story of fear and pain, of loss and struggle. Many lose their loved ones, a lot struggled for loss of jobs and livelihood, and for those who were stranded in other places and not allowed to go home to their families – it was a story of agony and frustration for the heads of the family having a hard time putting food on the table.”
Those were the words told by Mayor Beng Climaco as she spoke to members of the Zamboanga City Council in the opening of her 8th State of the City Address and emphasized the gargantuan tasks and responsibilities of the local chief executive, especially in this time of the pandemic that already killed over 180 people here.
“We all agree that the year 2020 was indeed a world-changing and paradigm-shifting moment in our lifetime as a City, as a nation, and as a global community. It was a year that we all lived under the shadow of a pandemic when the Coronavirus or Covid-19 brought the world down to its knees. Lockdowns and community quarantine rolled across the globe and life as we knew it seemed to grind to a halt. Zamboanga City was no exception,” she said, citing local medical reports that since March last year Zamboanga had registered more than 3,900 Covid-19 cases and at least 140 more active cases.
“The numbers reflect the gravity of the situation. These numbers are not mere statistics. They are mothers, fathers, grandparents, children and friends. For some families who lost their loved ones, this meant empty seats last Christmas. I, too, have lost two dearest and closest people who stood like my parents - my 95 year old Aunt was buried on her birthday last December 31, and ten days later, my 99-year old Uncle, my mother’s brother, also died due to the virus. Bien deficil el Covid,” Climaco went on as council members listened carefully to her.
“They left this world with a strong message that Covid is not a hoax. It is real. It remains a threat and an enormous task for all of us to come together and find solutions to this medical catastrophe than pulling each other down. We offer a moment of prayerful silence to all those who perished due to Covid-19,” she told the audience.
And further saying: “We also express, as a City, our deepest sympathy to their families. We are one with you. Together, we will heal as a City and move forward with renewed hope and confidence, that with God’s amazing grace, all will be well and we will rise up victorious,” the mayor said.
But despite the despair, Climaco said amidst these deaths are also stories of recovery for 3,585 Covid patients – “a story of courage, of bravery and selflessness of all our front liners, health care workers, security forces and countless others – ordinary people doing extraordinary things for the City we all love and cherish.”
“It is also a story of hope, of resiliency and of our strong commitment to continue with the work left to do because we still have lots of battles to fight. Felea contra Covid, felea contra hambre, felea contra mala informacion, felea contra propaganda y politica na tiempo de pandemia y felea para dale buen salud, esperanza, amor y prosperidad con todo vivientes de Ciudad de Zamboanga,” she said, reflecting from the challenges of the past year.
She said this pandemic brought out the strengths and best of humanity - faith, generosity, love of neighbor, loyalty and resilience. “This also showed the weaknesses and worst of a few - conspiracies, lies, ambitions, illusions of grandeur, crab mentality, betrayals and hypocrisy. During this pandemic, we faced hostile political attacks; disinformation and malicious campaign in traditional and social media; the influx of returning residents and arrival of deportees from Malaysia, movement of people in our transport terminals; draining government resources; unsynchronized inter-government guidelines; shortage of isolation and quarantine spaces; and the increasing discontent of the public due to the many restrictions,” she continued on.
Speaking frankly on the podium, the mayor said: “For many of those who are eyeing the position as early as now, it requires being able to withstand all forms of political attacks snipe shooting from all possible angles regardless of your sincerity to help and serve, it requires faith in God no matter how hard the challenges may be, even if you feel like giving up; it requires profound analyses, sound judgment on very complex issues, a devotion to facts, to science and research in creating policies, it requires respect for our history and culture in building social relationships, a strong moral compass in making a decision, to be honest and accountable always, to have the ability to listen and to genuinely care and not fake it just to gain public sympathy, and to believe that the lives and aspirations of almost a million Zamboanguenos matter and are worth fighting for. Ciudad y projimo antes de todo, antes de interes personal. It is not about us. It will always be about our people.”
Climaco said as elected officials, everyone carry the confidence, hope, and trust of the constituents to deliver the promise of a secure society, a healthy environment, and a better life. “Hence, no matter how intimidating the situation is, we always have to be in our best because we owe it to the people who put their faith on us,” she said.
Although the mayor did not identify those who maligned her and behind black propaganda against her, Climaco lambasted many times in the past years the fake news and false information being peddled by her detractors and she called on the public to carefully scrutinize news or stories created to deliberately misinform or deceive readers and is often created to influence views or for political motives.
“El black propaganda ta continua y el fake news, false information na social media ta continua hace calayat el cuantos maga persona que tiene mal intencion para destrosa el govierno local, para destrosa el esfuerzos del govierno por de ila vested interest,” she said. “Y el los demas personas, como venganza contra con el govierno cay no puede estos maga gente influir con el gobierno local. Por tantos años, el ataque contra na administracion sin descanso por causa de politica.”
Climaco said the black propaganda is a gross distortion of the truth, adding, the local government continues to work hard for the welfare of the people while her foes are busy spreading black propaganda ahead of the 2022 national and local elections.
Last year, she cited the P74-million Zamboanga City Waterfront and Heritage Walk Development Project in R.T. Lim Boulevard that her detractors claimed had been abandoned by the local government although it was ongoing.
She said everything was thrown at her but the kitchen sink. However, despite all black propaganda and attacks of political trolls in social and broadcast media, Climaco continues to be popular among the local residents.
And proof of her popularity is the huge number of her Facebook followers now at almost 323,000 or more than 200% increase from her 133,000 fans in 2018 – a year before she was re-elected and won over former mayor and lawmaker Celso Lobregat.
Climaco said she is leaving behind a legacy of good governance responsive to the needs and welfare of the Zamboangueños, more especially at this time of the pandemic. She also thanked the Zamboangueños for their unwavering support and love for her. (Zamboanga Post)
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