The panel of Senator Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos, chair of the senate committee on public works and highway, on Thursday approved bills which seek to name two roads after the parents of President Benigno Aquino III.
(from left) Leyte (1st Dist) Rep. Ferdinand Martin “FM” Romualdez, Ilocos
(1st Dist) Rep. Ronald Singson and Iloilo (2nd Dist) Rep. Arcadio Gorriceta
during the deliberation of House Bill 1042 naming the Diversion Road in
Tacloban City, Leyte as Gov. Benjamin “KOKOY” T. Romualdez Diversion
Road authored by Cong. Romualdez. The late Gov. Romualdez is the father
of Cong Romualdez. Ver Noveno
Approved at the committee level were HBN 4400 naming as “President Cory C. Aquino Avenue” the circumferential road at the junction of the Iloilo-Dumangas Coastal Road in Balabago, Jaro District, Iloilo City and HBN4398, naming a stretch of the national highway along the Iloilo Diversion Road as “Senator Benigno S. Aquino, Jr. Avenue”.
The Marcos panel also gave its nod to House Bill No. 4400 which asks to call diversion road in Tacloban City, Leyte as Gov. Benjamin T. Romualdez Diversion Road.
The three bills were among the nine proposed measures which originated from the House of Representatives that seek to name or rename roads in various parts of the country.
Marcos’ panel likewise agreed to the committee’s omnibus action to HBN 1247—Naming the diversion road in Sorsogon City, Sorsogon as Salvador H. Escudero III Diversion Road and HBN 4215—Naming the Camiguin Circumferential Road in the Province of Camiguin into the Pedro P. Romualdo Circumferential Highway.
The other approved measures were HBN 5204—Naming “St. Paul Avenue” the road beside the St. Paul College of Ilocos Sur (SPCIS) High School Department Bantay, Ilocos Sur and SPCIS College Department in Bayubay, San Vicente, Ilocos Sur; HBN 1140—Naming the national road from Barangay Abangay to Barangay Poblacion, Dingle, Iloilo as ‘Board Member Rufino A. Palabrica, Jr. National Road’; HBN 4013—Renaming the Acop – Tublay, Kapangan – Kibungan – Bakun – Sinipsip, Buguias Secondary National Road in Benguet to Gov. Bado Dangwa National Road and HBN 4012—Renaming the Gurel – Bokod – Kabayan – Abatan Road, Benguet to Cong. Andres Acop Cosalan Road.
Benguet lone district Rep. Ronald Cosalan had asked for the omnibus approval of the measures under consideration of the Senate committee.
The National Historical Commission of the Philippines had earlier objected to the passage of four of the measures based on its “10-year rule”, which calls for the lapse of 10 years from the death of a person before any public infrastructure can be named after him.
These are the bills on the late President Aquino, Romualdez, Escudero and Romualdo.
The President’s mother and former president Corazon C. Aquino, succumbed to colon cancer on August 9, 2009.
Romualdez, a former Leyte Governor and the younger brother of Ilocos Norte Rep. Imelda Marcos, also served as Philippine Ambassador to the United States, China and Saudi Arabia. He died at the age of 81 on February 21, 2012.
Escudero, the father of Sen. Chiz Escudero, was a former congressman and agriculture minister during the time of the late President Ferdinand Marcos. He succumbed to colorectal cancer on August 3, 2012.
Romualdo was a former congressman and member of the 1971 Constitutional Convention, who died of pneumonia last April 24, 2013.
But the NHCP waived the rule, “considering the contribution to the nation and the length of service of to their respective communities of the honorees” named in the various bills before the committee.
“I think that it is a very wise decision (of the NHCP), to really defer to the locals to decide who it is that they choose to honor within their own local communities,” Marcos said.