SEVILLA.- Trying to stay clear from whatever unsavory tag they were expected to reap in the wake of the succession process-from husband to wife, the Digals of this town made no qualms of the arrangement, citing transparency as the bedrock of their dominance in town politics. “Conjugal partnership”, the couple chorused when asked if they were not distracted by the dynasty issue which was revived as the new mayor braced herself to learn the nuances of local governance. For the former mayor of Sevilla, he saw to it that the wife will learn the ropes of handling the affairs of the town. Critics of the Digal couple went to town to malign the partnership recalling the much-maligned conjugal dictatorship during the Marcos regime. The former mayor invited tirades as he was very visible in the municipal hall although it was his way of nurturing his wife the intricacies of handling the affairs of local government. He was armed with an appointment as executive assistant.
Like a doting husband to a wife willing to learn, the husband steered the path of his wife so that when she will be on her own, he will slowly fade from the shadows of Sevilla politics. A public school teacher before becoming the chief executive of the town, Mayor Ernesita Digal, considered herself as an apprentice to a veteran politician like her husband who was mayor for Sevilla for three terms. Elaborating on the transparent mantra, Mayor Digal showed how her practice of transparency was implemented by government officials and employees. The layout of the municipal hall in both floors of the two-storey building can be seen from the outside to discourage illegal transactions like bribery. The reality of a transparent governance was an original concept of former mayor Digal so much so that when his wife took over, she made the same hallmark in the way a local government is being run. Recalling the feat hard to duplicate in the history of how governance should be carried out, ex-mayor Digal presided over a legacy to the people of Sevilla that may leave an inedible imprint in their hearts. |
