THE CHAIN THAT LINKS TO DEVELOPMENT

Duty was what brought him back to Bohol to become the OIC-Mayor of Sagbayan and, perhaps, it is his destiny to be chosen by the people he has long envisioned of serving. A direct descendant of the first Mayor is the man running the show in Sagbayan and the municipality is experiencing a flurry of developments during the first-term of Mayor Jimmy Torrefranca.

The grandson of Baudilio Torrefranca, the founder of Sagbayan, Jimmy Libres Torrefranca was born on May 30, 1954 in Lahug, Cebu City . He is the son of Lucrecio Torrefranca and Esperanza Libres. His father was a charismatic leader who was fondly called Crensiong, the longest-serving Mayor of Sagbayan, starting in 1955 until 1971. Perhaps, this was Jimmy's motivation to excel and succeed in life. Mayor Crensiong Torrefranca's siblings are all professionals working in Australia , Canada and the United States . Only the youngest, Robert, a former municipal councilor, and Jimmy have remained in Bohol .

Jimmy started his elementary education in Sagbayan and moved on to Divine Word College for his secondary studies. He was an outstanding student earning praises for his performance and hard work in school. Whereas his father wanted him to be a doctor, he dreamed of becoming a pilot; but it was not meant to be as he failed the physicals due to poor eyesight. He stayed at DWC for his tertiary education, where he earned his BS Political Science degree. He was adjudged as Best Actor and Best Debater during his college days, hinting at gifts that would be put to good use in the future. He wanted to go on with his studies and take up Law but he was eventually lured to Manila and went into business with his cousins, in the Torrefranca Company (TORCO) Industrial Sales, Inc.

He married his long-time girlfriend, Myrna Balani, in 1977. They resided in Parañaque and now have six children: Joan T. del Rosario took a course in Physical Therapy, and is now based in Australia . Valerie T. Narona is a graduate in Electrical Engineering. She is presently employed in a call center in Cebu , while waiting for better options associated with her course. Lesley studied at HNU and finished Hotel and Restaurant Management. Ernesto is enrolled at SWU for a course in Veterinary Medicine. Alyssa is taking up Nursing; while Jamille, the youngest, is a first-year secondary school student; both at HNU.

Jimmy is the third-generation Mayor of the Torrefranca family. Will a fourth-generation Mayor be at the helm of this Municipality which was founded by his grandfather? Projections are positive along this direction; but Mayor Jimmy Torrefranca still has a decade to fulfill his dreams of developing Sagbayan. In 1986, after the People Power revolution brought down the Marcos regime, he was one of those chosen by President Corazon Aquino to help restore democracy in the Philippines – becoming the OIC-Mayor of Sagbayan. Leaving behind the flourishing family business in Manila , he heeded the call to duty and served the people, albeit in an OIC capacity. He came to Bohol with his family and resettled in Sagbayan.

In his short-lived term as OIC-Mayor, he was already able to lay the groundwork for the improvement of the Sagbayan Market and secure the donation of the lot for the new Sagbayan Municipal Hall building from Atty. Edilberto Gallares and the late Adelina Gallares-Mayuga. He also lived through an ambush at dawn during one of his visits to the barangays. He ran and lost in the 1987 election to the veteran politician Arthur Añana and lost again in the hotly contested 1998 election to Cesar Borja by a mere 166 votes. It was during the 1998 campaign period where he lived through his second ambush, which happened at noon , losing his Mitsubishi Pajero that was burned down during the crossfire. It was during the years after his close defeats where he shifted his focus to doing what was good at – business. He became a licensed contractor and established his own company, Bohol JMM Trading, which specialized in waterworks projects. With his expertise and good name to back him up, he became one of the biggest suppliers of pipes and other waterworks paraphernalia in the Province of Bohol.

In 2001 he was again asked to represent the party of Governor Rene Relampagos in the town of Sagbayan . Although his family objected putting himself in harm's way once again, he still longed to serve his fellow Sagbayanons and threw his hat in the mayoralty derby. In a dramatic twist of fate, Jimmy Torrefranca pulled out a stunning upset against his bitter rival with a runaway margin of 510 votes. Winning the mayoralty was not the only success of Mayor Jimmy Torrefranca during the past election. His running mate for Vice Mayor, Pastor Gudia, and five of his municipal councilors were also elected on the strength of Mayor Torrefranca's development-oriented platform during campaign. This paved the way for an unprecedented cooperation between the executive and legislative bodies for the development of Sagbayan.

Within the first six months of his term, Mayor Jimmy Torrefranca inaugurated the block tiendas in the Sagbayan market complex, the livestock auction building and the drilling source of the ambitious waterworks project that is now providing potable water to the Poblacion and the adjacent barangays. He also sourced funds for the purchase of a mini dump truck for the waste management program and a 90-horsepower farm tractor for the corn production program of Sagbayan. These projects garnered for him the Most Outstanding Municipal Mayor Award in the Public Service Category from Gawad International.

During his first term, a priority project was to provide potable water in every household in Sagbayan. To date, he has fulfilled the project, except in 4 barangays, where the process is still on-going. He will soon finish a 4, 000-seat gymnasium; while simultaneously he focuses on health care of his constituents. Aside from his political endeavors, Mayor Torrefranca is also putting Sagbayan in the consciousness of locals and foreigners through Bohol 's latest tourist spot – Sagbayan Peak . An ambitious joint venture with his cousin, Allan Torrefranca, he is maximizing the potential of the natural wonders found in the municipality – the world famous Chocolate Hills, the lush countryside and a great view of the sea that separates the island provinces of Bohol and Cebu . Still in its infancy, Sagbayan Peak is experiencing a brisk influx of local and foreign tourists benefiting not only the municipality of Sagbayan but the whole Province of Bohol , as well.

Another joint venture between the Torrefranca cousins in the Sagbayan Farms. The six-hectare property houses a modern piggery complex using the latest techniques in swine raising. It also incorporates biogas technology brought in by a consultant from Cebu . However, this is not strictly an economic enterprise for the cousins, as they recently conducted a dispersal program to qualified barangay applicants in Sagbayan. At the end of the day, Mayor Torrefranca finds time to relax and entertain guests at Sagbayan Peak , the place he calls “heaven on earth,” as he reflects on what he has accomplished and contemplates on the next step he has to take for the benefit of his family and his fellow Sagbayanons. Mayor Jimmy Torrefranca demonstrates that a good name backed by a good education, hard work, a little bit of luck and a lot of prayers are the ingredients to a good life.

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