THE ILOCOS TIMES’ top 10 Ilocanos for 2014

[Publisher’s Note: As it has become a tradition for The Ilocos Times to fete and recognize the 10 most outstanding Ilocanos for the year, we are proud to present this year’s choice by the paper’s editorial board. Inasmuch as we want to honor all who made it big for the past 2014, we limited our choices to those who made—and sustained—the biggest impact to the province. Kudos to this year’s awardees and may you all have the same impact in the coming New Year. Congratulations and more power]

AS ILOCANDIA’s oldest and most read newspaper, The Ilocos Times continues to bear witness to the greatness of the Ilocano. This is the third year we are presenting this list of Ilocanos who have made a significant dent in their respective spheres of influence.

The 2014 roster is interestingly diverse. Of the 10 honorees, 5 are individuals while the other half are groups. One is nonagenarian while another is a youth group. Two are elected officials while two are NGOs—one a watchdog while the other a volunteers’ group. Of the individual awardees, 3 are women. This year we are also recognizing an honorary Ilocano who is well-loved by all Filipinos.

Here are the Top 10 Ilocanos of 2014:

Ma. Imelda “Imee” R. Marcos

Governor, Ilocos Norte

If she wins as governor, her critics warned in 2010, she will probably spend more time in Metro Manila than in the Ilocos Norte Capitol.  “She will be bored here,” they said matter-of-factly. Sure, Imee Marcos had served as congresswoman for nine years but that job meant more time spent in the nation’s capital.

Four years and one reelection later, the cynics, or whatever have remained of them, are silent. Many may now even be singing a different tune. Looking at how things are going on for the province, it has become increasingly difficult not to admire Ms. Marcos as a leader. Highly popular and well-loved, she has attained rock star status never before seen in this part of the country.

Through her well-rounded, well-planned, well-executed programs on education, employment, culture and the arts, agriculture, and tourism among others, Ilocos Norte, already the best little province in the Philippines, stands on an enviable place of distinction and pride. More good things are expected to come as the governor unveiled during this year her clear and realistic blueprint of development dubbed IN 2020.

Miriam E. Pascua

President, Mariano Marcos State University

In her almost 10-year stint as president, Mariano Marcos State University has emerged as a forward-looking, internationally competitive institution of higher learning. Under her term, the university’s international linkages grew rapidly, as manifested by the influx of world-renown scientists collaborating with homegrown academics and researchers. 

MMSU’s academic programs have also proven to be of topnotch quality, having hurdled most stringent accreditation visits, including the AACCUP institutional accreditation which has been, by far, attained by only two state universities in the Philippines. MMSU is also a top-performing school in professional licensure examinations across disciplines and has churned out a number of board topnotchers. Her efforts to expand MMSU’s program offerings led to the opening of the MMSU College of Law, whose first batch nailed the highest bar passing percentage in Northern Philippines in 2014. In the pipeline are the College of Medicine, College of Fine Arts, and the Institute of Communication and Technology. Moreover, the university’s research and extension endeavors, all meant for inclusive growth for the Filipino people, have consistently stood out among the best in the country.

But the best achievement of Dr. Pascua is the moral leadership she has exemplified at all times. MMSU’s longest-serving president has never been embroiled in any irregularity or any act of graft and corruption. For her combined qualities of brilliance and virtue, she has gained the respect not only of her constituency, but of other state university presidents and agency heads as well.

Eduardo “Eddie” G. Guillen

Mayor, Piddig, Ilocos Norte

PROVING that even essentially small municipalities can dream big—then do something to realize it—Piddig Mayor Eduardo G. Guillen may have actually moved heaven and earth to bring progress and development to his erstwhile sleepy town.

With a 10-hectare plantation being planned and which would be implemented as public-private partnership, the Piddig municipal government, through Mr. Guillen, has also entered into a supply agreement with a coffee corporation or the establishment of a modern coffee plantation and later on a milling center to supply quality grade coffee to at least 200 supermarkets and 150 hotels and restaurants in the Philippines, Canada and the United States.

Aside from this, the municipal government, through Mr.  Guillen, is now also implementing an honest-to-goodness health care system that looks after their poorest constituents from birth to burial. And according to the mayor, the health care package is actually available to all Piddig residents as the municipal government has deposited an amount at Mariano Marcos Memorial Hospital in Batac for all concerned to be admitted at the hospital without question.

Through all these, Mr. Guillen proved that in public service one does not need a huge local government coffers, all one needs is a vivid imagination and the strong will and determination to pursue and realize them.

Anti-Black Sand Mining Advocates

SOMETIME in June 2014, the Sangguniang Panlalawigan, thru SP member Atty. Joel R. Garcia attempted to reverse an earlier provincial board resolution that called for the total ban of black sand mining in Ilocos Norte. Luckily for the province, Atty. Garcia called for a public hearing before they decide on whether to reverse the province’s position on black sand mining or not.

During the public hearing, anti-black sand mining groups converged at the Provincial Capitol to collectively register their objection to Atty. Garcia’s plan.

Led by key players from various sectors—NGOs, people’s organizations, church groups, the academe, and the media—the anti-black sand mining group was able to convince the flip-flopping legislator to shelve his plan and to let the total ban on black sand mining stand.

At least as of now or to extent that our people will remain vigilant, Ilocos Norte is spared from the perils of black sand mining now being suffered by neighboring provinces

GLEDCO—A story of matchless success

GLEDCO (Government of Laoag Employees’ Development Cooperative) was born out of an urgent need to address the financial independence of employees by harnessing the power of the credit market to mobilize savings and generate additional income. From a mere capitalization of P125,000.00 in 2002, GLEDCO has parlayed its own investment into a half-a-billion worth of assets by 2014.

With the convergence of RA 7520 and RA 7160, employees evolved into entrepreneurs of high caliber guided by their familiarity with public governance principles and enhanced individual involvement in contributing to its growth.

Today, GLEDCO has overtaken older cooperatives and now stands out in the province as it contends for top performance ranking region wide. Expertly managed by Laoag City accounting office head Edgar Pascual with the guidance of the GLEDCO board chaired by Enrico Aurelio, the cooperative have broken a lot of ground in its more than 10 decades of existence. It forged a private-public partnership with the Laoag City government which produced numerous projects under the cooperative principle of mutual actions and use of resources. Significant among these projects is the acquisition of heavy equipment for the use of the city’s Oplan Dalus program as well as infrastructure development through the build-operate scheme.

Sirib Ilokano Kabataan Association (SIKA)

When the Sangguniang Kabataan (SK) was frozen, the youth of Ilocos Norte found a golden opportunity for genuine youth participation in social development and change. Unlike the SK which had become a breeding ground of corruption and inefficiency among young people, SIKA is nongovernment and voluntary in nature. It is composed of well-driven, well-disciplined members, now numbering around 4,000, coming from every corner of the province.

What is particularly admirable about SIKA is the love of country, sense of discipline, and independent-mindedness they exhibit during provincial events and in the activities of their local chapters. At this time when people have increasingly become more cynical, jaded, and selfish, SIKA shows us that volunteerism still works. In Ilocos Norte, the saying “youth is hope” no longer sounds cliché but reverberates loudly as an inspiring reality.

Ilocos Norte Tourism Office

That Ilocos Norte has emerged as a top tourist destination in the Philippines is beyond question. Current tourist arrivals for 2014 is estimated at 900,000—an almost tenfold leap from the barely 100,000 visitors in pre-Imee 2009. Various tourism trails have also been organized to make Ilocos Norte the total and ultimate destination that it is—there’s history and heritage, nature and green technologies, gastronomic attractions and out-of-the-box events.

All these have resulted to more business establishments, more jobs, and high levels of confidence and pride of place among locals. Products development took a big leap this year with the province’s participation in Manila Fame, the Philippines’ premier design and lifestyle event.

Ilocos Norte Communication and Media Office

Composed of a largely young and energetic workforce, this office is being recognized for effectively equipping the people of Ilocos with relevant information that enables them not only to avail of government services but to become active partners in development.

Various avenues of media, both the traditional and the new, are explored and utilized to reach out to the province’s stakeholders. This year, they released four issues of Paspas Dur-as, an all-Ilocano newsletter which has a circulation of 100,000 distributed by SIKA volunteers in every nook and corner of the province. Always to be relied on are their information mechanisms in social media, in addition to broadcast and print.

The efficiency of the provincial CMO can be best appreciated when compared to other LGU media offices. For instance, a recent study commissioned by the DILG revealed that the people of Laoag City have low levels of awareness on the city’s programs, no thanks to an unimpressive media center that does very little, if at all.

Spider Rodas

Musician, deejay

He is a disc jockey and PR practitioner at day, a rocker at night, and a dreamer every second of his life.

Spider Rodas, the organizer of the Ilocos Music Artists Society (IMAS) also known as Ilocos All-stars, has labored hard to unite Ilocano artists and help them make a mark in the locality. Before, almost all bars and hangouts in Ilocos Norte employed bands only from Metro Manila and its environs. Today, with the exception of Cockhouse and Nightlife, all entertainment establishments here showcase homegrown talents.

A broad coalition of around 30 performing groups (singers, rappers, and dancers), IMAS has also been commissioned by the Laoag City Government to organize musical extravaganzas during the Pamulinawen Festival.

Magdalena G. Gamayo

National Treasure for Weaving

In a province experiencing landscape shifts not only physically, but also in ways of life, a nonagenarian shows the value of holding on to one’s roots.

Lola Magdalena, an “inabel” (Ilokano hand-woven cloth) maker, started honing her skills in hand-weaving at age 16 during World War II. Using a simple contraption, she started with simple patterns and ended up developing her own designs that enriched the abel industry. Her creative hands gave birth to “kusikos” (spiral forms similar to oranges), “inuritan” (geometric design), and the most challenging “sinan-sabong” (flowers).

What for is an amazing craft and beautiful designs when they are not passed on to the next generations? Ms. Gamayo has generously bequeathed his knowledge and expertise to younger weavers in informal training sessions held in her home. Luckily, Mariano Marcos State University, realizing the value of preserving traditional crafts, opened a conservation school that will teach abel weaving.

In 2012, the humble lola from Pinili was thrown to the national limelight when President Benigno Simeon C. Aquino III signed Presidential Proclamation 475, declaring Ms. Gamayo as a National Living Treasure (Gawad sa Manlilikha ng Bayan). The president personally bestowed the honor on this great Ilocano in fitting rites held in Malacañang Palace.

Special Citation: Nora Aunor

Around 3,000 extras took part in the filming of Himala, the 1982 Ishmael Bernal masterpiece shot in Paoay. Considering its limited budget, it was a miracle of sorts putting together what is now largely considered, both by critics and the viewing public, as the best film ever produced in the Asia Pacific. On May 10, the miracle happened anew, with a crowd ten times bigger witnessing the immortalization of the film’s iconic character, Elsa.

The unveiling of a fiberglass statue depicting Elsa was the highlight of this year’s Himala sa Buhangin, an offbeat outdoor arts and music festival staged in the Paoay Sand Dunes. Aunor, who played the lead role, graced the event to the delight of an estimated 25,000 revellers, including hundreds of die-hard Noranians from other parts of the country. In that event, Aunor was declared an honorary daughter of Paoay.

At that time, the Superstar was highly expected to be proclaimed as a National Artist for Film, an accolade she rightfully deserves. In a very unpopular move, however, President Benigno Simeon C. Aquino III decided to deny her of the honor, causing massive dismay not only among Aunor’s fans but even among people who have decent capacity for art appreciation. She was so fit for the award that even Vilmanians were outraged by Mr. Aquino’s messing up the NCCA-initiated National Artist Award when the president’s signature is supposedly only ministerial.

But what is a piece of paper unsigned when Nora Aunor’s name is deeply etched in the hearts of our countrymen?