The term of office of the elected and re-elected government officials during the May 13, 2013 elections will start at noon today and will end on the same hour and date in 2016. It means they have until noon today to take their oaths of office although most of the municipal officials have already taken their oath earlier. They will have exactly three years at the helm of political power that is filled with so much responsibility for the serious, committed and dedicated public servants. However to the easy-go-lucky and morally bankrupt who think that their mandate first is the attainment of their personal agenda, the three years will be a walk in the park where every step is an opportunity to make money – lots of money - for themselves while their constituents wallow in poverty. No one of course will confess to that. Usually re-elected political leaders just continue with what they have started but every new term should always be an opportunity to look back to what has not been accomplished among the plans that were laid for the past term and look forward to what needs to be done given the present and projected situations and as support to national and regional plans.

Incoming political officials should not be content with their view of what the situation is and how they think problems should be addressed. They also need to take an objective look at the views of the opposition and detractors about real gaps that need to be bridged or overcome. Some of the issues thrown their way during the election campaign may actually have factual basis and therefore should not be treated as mere propaganda. This is not difficult to do for those who bear the mark of a statesman. For the province of Bohol, there is not much change in the faces of the elected provincial officials since there will only be three new faces, Atty. Tom Abapo and Jaja Jumamoy for the 2nd District and Pediong Jala for the 3rd District in the Sangguniang Panlalawigan. Among the three congressmen only Aris Aumentado is both a new face and a neophyte. All the rest are re-elected officials. Gov. Edgar Chatto’s administration is expected to sail an easy cruise and pace to the crest of his plans for his second term given a supportive legislative council and an enormous support of the people (he won by a majority of 176,016 votes over his closest rival). After all his development framework of HEAT (for Health, Education, Agriculture, Tourism) Bohol backed by strategies of LIFE HELPS (for Livelihood, Infrastructure, Food, Education, Health, Environment, Leadership, Peace and Order, and Sports) have become very popular with all the stakeholders. Among the elected government officials of Bohol however, Cong. Aris Aumentado of the 2nd District bears watching by the people not only because he is a neophyte in the office that he won but also because he is expected to fill the shoes of a great and multi-awarded man – the late Congressman and three-termer Gov. Erico B. Aumentado - his father. The expectation of the people is his greatest challenge.

As to Gov. Chatto the greatest challenge of his administration in his second term is translating and converting the various awards the province had won during his first term into something that the people in the lowest level could feel and really enjoy. The economic benefit of tourism should trickle down to the poorest Boholano and the behaviors of tourism frontline services like tricycles, vans for hire, public buses, hotels and restaurants are not experiences that tell the tourist “don’t comeback”; the benefit of rice sufficiency should be translated into high price for the farmers but lower price of rice for the consumers; the benefit of the Best Governed Province Award and the Seal of Excellence Award must translate into feeling of security, efficient and effective delivery of public services, and transparency in all systems and procedures in any and all levels of government. Above all however one measure of success in Gov. Chatto’s second term would be bringing down the incidence of poverty in the province. Recent figures of the National Statistics and Coordination Board (NSCB) still list Bohol with more than 30% poverty incidence. For a population of 1.2 million, that is more than 360,000 poor Boholano.

It is good though that Gov. Chatto has already conducted a first term assessment and second term planning with all the elected provincial officials including the congressmen and the appointive officials last June 17-19. In that activity the development framework and strategies have been revised to HEAT Bohol HELPS LIFE toward a BIG LEAP (Bohol Inclusive Growth Leads to Accelerated Prosperity). Clearly the direction of the Chatto administration in his Term 2 is focused on the quality of life of the Boholano person. In front of these Term 2 plans are big infrastructure projects like the new airport in Panglao, a new location and building for the Gov. Gallares Memorial Hospital, a new provincial capitol, a sports arena complex, a business park, and improved irrigation systems among others. I will discuss the implications of these in future topics of The Agora. NOTES. The Agora congratulates all the elected officials who will take their oath of office today and those who have already taken their oath earlier. An oath may be administered by a person clothed with authority by law to do so like the judges of the court of justice but it is actually an appeal to God to witness the act and the truth of the statement or the sacredness of the promise. So may God be always your guide in the discharge of your duties and responsibilities.