May 5-11, 2011
Tagum City Mayor Rey “Chiong Oy” Uy seems to be coy to the prospect of running for governor by 2013 polls after his present third term, but he maintained his earlier stance of running for the post “if there’s vacancy,” that is, if present second-termer and partymate Governor Rodolfo del Rosario will not seek reelection.
In an interview Tuesday inside his “governance warroom”- the City Budget Office at the Sangguniang Panglungsod building, the tough mayor recalled in explaining his stance saying that never throughout his long career as politician that he made a “gatecrash” to a post that is still available for reelection bid by the current holder.
“Wala sa akong ugali ang mangilog. Ako hinoon ang ginakalaban bisag pang last term na. (it’s not in my character to wrest a post. It’s me who’s always being rivaled even if I’m already running for last term),” he said referring to the last May polls where he was rivaled by ex-Cong. Arrel Olano and ex-Gov. Gelacio “Yayong” Gementiza.
He recalled that when he ran for vice gubernatorial post in 1992 in the undivided Davao del Norte the post was open and there was no reelectionist for it.
In that polls Mayor Uy, who was then a 36-year-old first-termer boardmember, dueled with political veteran Gementiza, who came from being the longest-reigning mayor of the then municipality of Tagum during Marcos time.
Uy after losing in the polls went into a term of political forlough. “I went into farming, planting durian trees,” he said.
By 1995 he went back to politics running for boardmember and won handily.
By 1998 polls after the creation of Compostela Valley from Davao del Norte and the conversion of Tagum as a city, Uy ran for mayor as the post was open while now Vice Gov. Victorio “Baby”Suaybaguio Jr was ending his last mayoral term. He was rivaled by ex-Cong. Baltazar Sator, who was also ending his last term as District 1 congressman. Now Boardmember Antonio Lagunzad, coming from being the Tagum vice mayor, also joined in that mayoral contest. Uy won in a close three-corner fight.
In his first reelection bid as city mayor in 2001 polls, he was opposed by Gementiza, who was then reigning as the vice governor of the smaller Davao del Norte. Uy lost again to Gementiza in the mayoral bout.
In 2004 Gementiza did not seek reelection as he ran for governor leaving the mayoral post available and open. Uy again made a political comeback running to the open mayoral post and won in a bout with a comebacking Suaybaguio. On the other hand, Gementiza in tandem with now Cong. Anthony “AGR” del Rosario won as governor against then agriculture secretary Roberto Sebastian, a largely non-resident of Davao del Norte.
In that 2004 polls, Gov. Rodolfo del Rosario did not seek reelection as he was appointed as secretary of New Government Centers, while Gementiza was supported by both the politically influential and then united Floirendo and Del Rosario camps in a reported modus vivendi that Gementiza’s governorship was meant for one term only and that by 2007 he would bequeath the post to then Vice Gov. AGR.
From 2004 mayoral comeback of Uy, he won in series his second and present third terms. He was always opposed by political somebodies in his two reelection bids.
In 2007 polls, Uy was opposed lightly opposed by third- termer Councilor and lawyer Meliton Lemos, who allied with Gementiza, who sought reelection for governor against Gov. Del Rosario. That polls started the political split between the Floirendos and Del Rosarios when the older Del Rosario ran for governor instead of his son AGR when former District 2 Cong. Antonio “Tonyboy” Floirendo Jr was bidding to run for governor withholding the bid of his nephew AGR. Their political split reportedly cost the governor to be shunted out from the mammoth Tadeco conglomerate and businesses. Reelectionist Gementiza lost to Del Rosario.
In the last May 2010 polls Uy won handily by wide margins over two political veterans- outgoing Cong. Arrel Olano and ex-Gov. Gementiza.
In sum, Uy throughout his political career broke an unprecedented record of defeating one governor, two congressmen and one vice governor.
Comparatively, in terms of fighting veteran politicians the late stateman ex-Gov. and ex-Cong. Prospero Amatong and Gov. Del Rosario respectively defeated only one vice governor/ governor (Gementiza).
In the same interview, Mayor Uy bared that mayors and barangay captains are casually prodding him now to run for governor by 2013, but “with all due respect to him (Gov. Del Rosario)… kung di si gov modagan, di modagan ko (if gov will not run, then I’ll run).”
Against the said prodding, he said “let’s give Gov who is a last-termer by 2013 a graceful exit… respeto ba… hatagan pod nato siya nga way kalaban. Di parehas sa ato nga bisag for last termer na sa miaging eleksyon gihatagan gihapon ug kalaban.”
The mayor added that politicians should respect each other referring to the way of not opposing last termers and not to be selfish enough for one’s personal interest like those last termers who loudly made big reason on their last term and ran to other post even if it is not vacant or occupied by a friend or partymate.
He said anew that he is giving thumbs up to the mayoral bid of his son senior city Councilor Ce Carlo “Oyo” Uy in the 2013 polls.
So if there is no vacancy for him by 2013, he said, “I’ll better go back to farming, planting trees like falcata” while on political forlough.
He said planting abundant trees along the programs offered by the government like the industrial plantation is not only contributing for the greening of the environment but is also a profitable livelihood venture for tree growers and farmers to become millionaires.
He added that if a mature falcatta tree produces a cubic meter of log which at present fetches a price of P5,000 per cubic meter, “100 falcatta trees alone can already earn you a handsome half a milion pesos.”
“So mao na, I’ll better plant trees, wa pay hassle,” he said in gist.
Still, pundits are speculating that in that prospect of political forlough or vacation from politics the mayor would be running for governor by 2016. (Rural Urban News/Cha Monforte)
Filed under: Uncategorized, Tagum City Mayor Rey “Chiong Oy” Uy
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