he was the the first born in the family and at that, the apple of the eye of the family esp. my lolo and my mom...
and quite a happenstance, when my lolo died , the mango plantation was given to kuya !
how lucky could you be..i said...
during high school , he was sent to the seminary for his secondary education. since they were not allowed to go home during weekends, we would just visit him every sunday afternoon . i was so excited with the stories he would tell of his spartan life in the seminary.
....when he was in college he enrolled at the ust major seminary hoping to be a priest...but maybe it wasnt his real calling. he instead finished his licensure in Philosophy graduating cum laude!
his first taste of politics was when he established KABAYAN...KAbataan para sa BAYAN. he founded it to awaken the youth's potential to be involved in social issues and at the same time to support our father during his term as mayor. yes... Papa was the first politico in our family...literally finishing nine years(3-terms) of his political career...
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| during papa's inagural as town mayor , extreme left is kuya |
so kuya had the motivation and spirit of a young leader then, and with a little push would be ignited to get 'in love' with politics.. but my parents had a different view..they said he was still too young to enter politics , eventually sending him to US to try his luck there.
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| papa on his visit to kuya in the us |
true enough he sighted his "luck" there and met his future wife ...ate Arlene and was later blessed with a daughter, Elene...
...Kuya worked for a while , saved their earnings , and then decided to come back in the Philippines.... this time , our parents gave their blessings for him to enter politics
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| during Kuya's wedding |
together with his wife , they established the first Alpha Vision Cable, serving Bustos and neighboring towns.
.... But politics was really in his blood...
he entered politics in 1998 and won as town mayor...finished his first term ...
but maybe because he was too young and naive then that the following elections he didnt make it.
God could have had other plans for him... kuya busied himself teaching at Bulacan State University where he got his Doctorate in Public Administration...
he even built them a big, unique and beautiful house made of antique materials he had acquired through the years.
i used to object vehemently on his entering into politics again when he said he was running for mayor in the 2010 election. i kept on reminding him that its just a waste of time and money for a thankless job.
i even told him to live a simple and quiet life away from intrigues and pseudo-promises of politics .
but he was so persistent ...
the more we objected ...the more he would yield in his desire to enter politics .... yes, the passion was in him...
and as fate would have dictated...Kuya won!
by a high margin! of overwhelming victory!
For a while, i was astonished...amazed of the turn of events. I am a quick-minded person who doesnt dwell on 'hopeless' hopes but kuya taught me , realistically, that ..."a quitter never wins" .
i salute him for that... i would vouch for him. i would even teach my children his boldness, his strength, and of course his perseverance.
for now, kuya is doing his job well in our town. i could truly say that he did it on his very own merit and not in the shadows of our parents ...as his detractors had been saying before.
this time he came fully prepared. i need not elaborate on his accomplishments as this is not a political write up but im truly proud of what he is doing to our town.
Papa must have been 'really'in high heavens now for continuing the WHEEL of legacy he had established.
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| Kuya Arnel, Ate Arlene & Elene |
i am truly proud of you...Kuya!
