GOV MON-MON!

January 27, 2025 Opinion

I first met Mon-mon Guico during the BBM Presidential Campaign in Binalonan, Pangasinan with Dhobbie de
Guzman and Leo Mercado. Despite the hectic preparations for the arrival of the then Unity Team, Mon-mon then a
Congressman who was running for Governor, was warm, accommodating and respectful of the fact that I too was a
former member of Congress. No airs, no frills, humble as one may be despite his solid background in politics and
business for over a decade or two.

He started off as Vice-Mayor in 2007 in his hometown of Binalonan, known by highway travelers to be the source of ‘nilagang’ sweet corn but now highly urbanized or industrial with investors pouring in. He became a three term Mayor starting in 2010, moved on as Congressman representing the 5th District of Pangasinan in 2019. With not much in terms of “action” on the ground in the halls of Congress and most probably bored with the endless debates, he decided to venture back to the Executive Branch running for Governor winning by a majority of more than 800,000 votes against his closest incumbent rival.

Google says his platform envisioned building the East to West Pangasinan expressway, improving the healthcare
system in the provincial hospitals as well as enticing more tourist and investors to the province and more. Today he has generated 14,290 job placements, both local and overseas, and has achieved his goal of building the Pangasinan Link Expressway (PLEX). He revitalized a salt farm in Bolinao town with his Pangasinan Salt Center and created the
Pangasinan Polytechnic College.

All 14 government hospitals have been bolstered with major innovations and his investment core group made sure that the economy will be given the much needed boost. He cared for Persons Deprived of Liberty or PDL’s at the Provincial Jail’s increasing their meal allowance and the frequency of their health checkups. In the war on drugs with no EJK’s, 80% of all barangays and 63% of all municipalities and cities were drug-free plus the crime rate decreased by 16% in 2022.

His government provided assistance to local towns and other provinces that were ravaged by calamities and natural disasters through the Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office. He institutionalized a feeding program and formed a stronger partnership with farmers to ensure food security especially because the province is not only the bangus capital of the Philippines but also the biggest supplier of “malaga” which will help not only the
province, but also the entire Philippines to be self-sufficient in the production of salt.

Governor Guico is a lover of the arts and culture as he established the Pangasinan Museum in the Casa Real and at one time or another had son Anton’s wife Stefanie, a soprano sing at an event at the capitol. He is a certified pilot “driving” his own chopper from one municipality to another. His educational background bolsters his political savy-High School at Ateneo de Manila University; Philosophy Degree, Certificate in Professional Education, and Master’s degree from the University of the Philippines Diliman. and a doctorate degree in Public Management from the Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Maynila.

He inherited his political genes from his father now Congressman Ramon Guico Jr., former Municipal Mayor of
Binalonan and the National President of the League of Municipalities of the Philippines. I remember campaigning for his father in his senatorial run with Bong Revilla as passenger in the fleet of airplanes, the family owned. His mother Arlyn Grace V. Guico, a pharmacist and Owner/ President/CEO of WorldCiti Medical Hospital instilled in
him the business acumen which was handy in managing the provincial affairs.

Married to the former Maan Tuazon, who is following the public-service footsteps of her husband by running for Mayor in Urdaneta City in the forthcoming elections. She too has a deep love for public service and known for her
service from the heart advocacies. A Bachelor of Science in Business Administration major in Computer Applications at Dela Salle University, College of Saint Benilde., she will lead Urdaneta to greater heights in the next years to come.

Like me, Gov. Mon-mon veers away from the traditional concept and practices of a politician. We never go to parties or events where we not invited to or be in a wake of a deceased person we do not know or friends of their relatives. We help in our own special way and silently as possible although sometimes social media and the press makes it difficult to do so. In his speech last March 27, 2023 at the historic Sison Auditorium in Lingayen, Pangasinan, he says it all… “We would like to ensure that the future generation of Pangasinan will be taken cared of by this government.” So far Mon-mon has performed well in his first term and as the Englishmen would say ‘If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it’? Sigh.