Courage defined

“TO FIGHT for the right, without question or pause ... 

To be willing to march into Hell, for a Heavenly cause ...”

The song of the Man from La Mancha gives the full measure of courage.

The name of the councilor from Porac proves no misnomer in his courageous stand for his constituents.

Mike Tapang makes an opposition of one at a Porac municipal council rubberstamping for the local executive in the hurried quest for a campus of the Don Honorio Ventura Technological State University (DHVTSU) in the town.

For that he has been all-too-hastily demonized as the force of resistance to the development of the town, the stumbling block to the bright future being opened to the youth of Porac.

“This is a beautiful project for the sake of the people. We appeal to the councilor not to derail it.”
So quoted this paper yesterday of Vice Mayor Dexter David urging Tapang to help fulfil the “ardent wish and supreme mission” to establish the DHVTSU campus in Porac.

In many a forum, David and the otherwise quiet Mayor Condralito de la Cruz have amplified DHVTSU-Porac as the “springboard of the people to jump over poverty.” 
And then lowered the boom on Tapang: that he opposed DHVTSU-Porac in retaliation for the rejection of his proposal to put up a P250-million public market and mall.

While he initially agreed with Tapang on the belief that the market proposal was under a build-operate-transfer scheme, Dela Cruz said he had to subsequently reject it after Tapang asked him to contract a loan for the proposed market-mall.
“Porac will be under debt for over 25 years amounting to more than P400 million. This is not a good proposition.” So was De la Cruz quoted as rationalizing his rejection of Tapang’s market wish.

Ah, how selfishly vicious of Tapang to now exact his vengeance, not at the town council and the mayor, but upon the innocent youth – they that shall be deprived of an otherwise promising future DHVTSU-Porac guarantees. So the town council and their mayor would like all of us to believe.

So do we believe? Not until we hear Tapang first.

The P250-million market proposal, Tapang vehemently denied, saying the project proponents were “directly communicating with the mayor and not me.” Saying he is all by his lonesome at the city council, “how can I work for the huge loan?” And so enjoined his peers to “stick to the issue and not bring up other issues.”  

“I am not against the establishment of DHVTSU in Porac. What I question is the memorandum of agreement entered into by the Porac government and DHVTSU which I believe is disadvantageous to our people,” says Tapang. “Its provisions only cover benefits for DHTSU and none for the local government.”

At a committee hearing of the sangguniang panlalawigan on May 3, Tapang raised  “salient points” of the MOA under question, to wit: the Porac LGU will: a) provide the land and the requisite funding for the construction of academic buildings and support infrastructure including instructional and laboratory facilities of the campus; b) shoulder capital expenditures for equipment, tools, supplies, books, fixtures, etc.; c) allocate an annual subsidy of P3 million to DHVTSU to cover its incidental expenses for a period of 25 years; and) turn over all the properties – land, buildings, facilities – to DHTSU after five years.

A totally lopsided arrangement in favour of DHVTSU, Tapang says. “Imagine we will shell out P3 million yearly for 25 years without the assurance that most of those who will benefit are from Porac.” Why, there is not even a provision in the MOA giving enrolment priority to Porac residents as well as scholarship grants, he added.

In yesterday’s Punto!, David said that the “points and amendments” raised by Tapang before the sangguniang panlalawigan had been addressed in their recent meetings.
“It’s on record via minutes of the meetings that concerns raised by Councilor Tapang had been addressed. Why mention them again? It derails the project,” said David.

The vice mayor noted that the law on the establishment of a state university provides at least 135 scholarship grants be given to residents of the host town or city.  
David expressed supreme confidence that the DHVTSU could operate on its own steam after the three-year observatory period, even as the Porac local government can very well sustain n its needs given the quarry revenues of the acclaimed “sand capital” of the country.

“In the Dela Cruz administration alone in 2011, our quarry revenues were at P29,613,240 with Capitol shares at P17,091,000. Compare that to 2010 quarry incomes of P22,526,370 and the provincial’s share of P15,826,000. Aren’t we capable of subsidizing a state university campus? Of course, it is better than running a community college because of complexities. DHVTSU is DHVTSU wherever you go and the P3-million subsidy can be stopped after favorable reviews in three years because we are certain DHVTSU is capable of operating in (sic) itself. By then, we could use the P3 million for other services and provide for more scholarships.” So David acclaimed in news reports.

Off tangent, says Tapang: “If my concerns have truly been addressed, why aren’t they incorporated, if only as addenda, to the MOA?”

Indeed, for after all, the mere words of the vice mayor and the mayor, even the minutes of meetings will never be as binding as a MOA. 

Tapang is defined here not only as courage. But prudence too.

Aye, those white billboards in Porac are right: Kailangan, Tapang.