My third year high school students had a funny way of saying what could well be the reason behind a number of people’s opposition to the idea of Tabuk becoming a city. I asked them what their vote would be assuming they were allowed to vote ‘yes’ or ‘no’ to citihood in the upcoming plebiscite. The answer I got was a resounding “NO!” When I asked them why, they simply said, “Basta!” When I pointed out that their answer is confusing, one stood up to say, “Basta, sir, di ko talaga feel,” to the approval of the class.
That brief exchange in class reminded me of a point raised by a friend who pointed out that the main reason people are not sold to the idea of Tabuk becoming a city is the gross mismatch between the image a city evokes in one’s mind and the image one actually sees in town. “Kasla nga saan nga maibagay,” is how he put it.
Add to this the point raised by some professionals and businessmen here which saw print in a previous article. Allow me to quote them on their statement again, “Kas-ano nga agbalin nga syudad ti Tabuk ket awan pay lang ti Jollibee.”
On my part as a columnist for the local paper Guru Press, I did hammer the point that people will feel queasy about giving their nod to citihood when they could not find even a slight semblance of city living in town.
Talking of recollection, I did predict in a press conference held some months ago that Tabuk will become a city and that Mayor Camilo Lammawin will be its first city mayor. I was right about Lammawin. As for the first prediction, I still stand by it.
I’ll tell you why.
The municipal government presently gives every barangay in Tabuk an equal sharing of 100,000 from the LGU’s internal revenue allotment. If our town officials are to be believed, Tabuk’s IRA will triple if it becomes a city. This means the share of every barangay will likewise triple. The increase in the share may not be that much significant to Bulanao and the barangays around the Poblacion area, but it could go a long way in barangays like Nambucayan, Calaccad, Cabaritan and other struggling barangays. With more money to spend on projects, a barangay chairman could easily endear himself to his constituents so you can be sure they will campaign very hard for Tabuk to become a city.
As for those who keep insisting that Tabuk cannot become a city because there is no Jollibee here, you might as well find better arguments. I myself could not imagine a city without a single movie house or at least some semblance of urban living but, hey, if it depended on appearances then our town will never get to become a city and we just might miss a great opportunity to make something of our beloved Tabuk.
Part of my certainty that Tabuk will become a city despite all the talks against it is because those opposing citihood are mostly residents of the urban barangays of Tabuk. Bulanao where my I keep my family is of special mention here. I had observed the voting trend in Bulanao and in some of the urban barangays and I had long since figured that Bulanao residents (likewise residents of Poblacion and other urban barangays) are so full of political opinions but are too lazy to vote. This last election, less than 50 % of Bulanao voters exercised their right of suffrage. The trend holds true in Poblacion and the other urban barangays.
Now you go back to the point I raised on the struggling barangays, and you will probably agree with me.
If that's not enough to convince you that Tabuk will become a city, I'll give you one more fact to chew on. In the last election, barely 25 000 of the over 44 000 registered voters of Tabuk went to vote. With no candidates imploring voters to vote, often with some "donation" (in cash or in kind) on hand, expect that less will actually vote even if this particular exercise is, in fact, more important than an election -- officials will come and go but being a city will not.
How does this guarantee victory for the yes-vote? No, "dagdag-bawas" won't be necessary. Just plain "dagdag" will do. The dagdag, of course, will come courtesy of the voters who would not vote. You can't do this in the urban barangays. But, in the other barangays...the sky is the limit, my friends.
And so it is that the barrios and the sitios would, in the end, be the ones that would carry Tabuk into becoming a city while Bulanao and Poblacion get to reap the benefits.
For those who feel Tabuk does not have the looks of a city and to you out there who are not from Tabuk, read the title. Yes, you better get used to the fact that Tabuk will become a city, and never mind that there is no Jollibee or McDonald's here.
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Let me just share one personal gripe against the citification drive. I was born in Poblacion West, just behind Tabuk National High School where I presently teach, but I grew up in Baguio City (now that’s a city) and lived for some months in Caloocan City (that’s also another city). You see I left two cities so I could live in a nice suburban town like Tabuk with lots of green wherever I look but, now that I’m here, my town officials had seen it fit to make me a city boy again.
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