PD Inaugural Address

Ako daku na pagtahod sa ato gwapo sanan abtik na Congressman Robert Ace Barbers. Sa
ato pinayangga na Gobernador, Gov.Lyndon Barbers. Sa Abante Surigao og Team
Batang Surigaonon, Vice Mayor-Elect Alfonso S. Casurra, our City Councilors Joenil,
Kap Boyet, Mano Batang and Toti, to my family, the Batang Surigaonon Youth og sa
tanan mga Batang Surigaonon, Maradjaw Na Adlaw!

Today is an anointed day and I would like to begin this inaugural address by
acknowledging the Great Architect of our Universe whose hand is the one that brought
me here. I came from a family with a little political background and while my career has
afforded me different leadership responsibilities in corporate and civic society groups, it
will never compare to the kind of challenges we faced in the last elections. And so the
only reason why I am here is not because of hard work nor political strategy. I am here
because it was designed that way by higher powers I can only try to understand. But I am
grateful because this design of which I am but a mere player, has allowed me to return to
my roots and fulfill a promise I made to my father and to the university where I came
from; and that is to serve the people with all that I am and with everything that I have.

Lao Tzu once said, "To lead people, walk behind them." Bag-o ako nagdesisyon
mukandidato, I asked myself how do I serve the people? What kind of leader do I want to
be? It is easy to say that our campaign was anchored on the principle of servant-
leadership but those are empty words if not put into action.

So bag-o ako officially nagpasa nan ako certificate of candidacy, nagsugod ako sa
paglibot sa tibuok siyudad. Bisan man kun diri ako nagdaku, dugay dugay ako tagdaya
nan ako trabaho sa lain lain lugar sa suyod sanan gawas sa ato nasud. Pagbalik nako diri,
daghan gajud an nabag-o sa Surigao and sadly, these changes did not improve the lives of
the people. I truly missed the good old days of fresh and affordable seafood, of a city
clean and safe and of seeing people who are truly happy and contented with their lives.

Sa amo mga paglibot-libot nakaabot kami sa mga kaislahan sanan sa mga lagjo na mga
barangay nan siyudad. (Tingaya pa man gani ako kay si Don Pepe Consigo og si anhing
Kagawad Nilo Aldonza na amo man unta an mga seniors sa amo grupo dili hangakon sa
amo mga lagjo na mga panaw, pero an iban na mga batan-on pa sa Team Batang
Surigaonon, amo naman hinuay sakit an tuhod. Hibayo na kamo kun sin-o kamo.)

Mapasalamaton ako na I was not alone in this fight. The very same team I was with the
day I decided to take on the biggest challenge of my life, are the very same people I am
here with today. Some of them will be joining me in the city government as elected
officials, while others will be serving in various capacities under this new administration.
I am proud to have worked alongside all of them because through them, I realized that
real servant-leadership in action is when you decide to put the people first even if there is
nothing to be gained from it.

But how do we actually put people first? The first step I believe is to truly listen. This is
the reason why our team went to deep into the ground, visiting barangays after barangays
and having dialogues with multiple sectors even before we presented ourselves as
possible alternatives to the prevailing leadership at that time.

An tinuod na leadership kay dili showcase nan kun unoy imo mabuhat o nan imo
abilidad, kun dili an paghatag nan tinuod na solusyon sa mga problema na tag-atubang
nan mga yanong Surigaonon. Our victory is a testament that we were the team that truly
listened to the people; and that we presented solutions that resonated well with all of you
who are here. You reaffirmed our ideas on how we can best serve our beloved Surigao so
we can finally be at the launchpad of a real growth and progress.

So today is not a celebration of my victory. Today, we are celebrating the fact that
because we rallied behind a strong cause, we were able to topple down an empire. The
overwhelming margin by which we won shows that tanan mga Batang Surigaonon andam
na para sa tinuod na kabag-ohon.

The last 12 years felt like Surigao not only lagged behind its regional counterparts but
also experienced probably the worst living conditions ever seen since it was chartered
into a city more than 50 years ago. Even before the 2017 strong earthquake, the 2020
Covid 19 pandemic and recently Super Typhoon Odette, poverty incidence in Surigao is
at 42%. So sa napuyo ka Surigaonon, upat diha pobre, dili maka-afford nan even the most
basic needs. And imbis kay sa gobyerno magpadapit an mga pobre, its response was to
privatize all basic services, making it even more difficult for every Surigaonon to live
with dignity.

But we are not here to dwell on the problems of the past. We are here to start building a
future na jaoy mga karajawan na pwede ikaasenso nan tanan. As an engineer, I am used
to designing a series of systems to solve problems. The Progresibong Dakbayan
Masterplan 2031 o an PD Masterplan 2031 was crafted in such a way that it addresses the
most urgent of problems Surigaonons are facing today. It then, proposes a roadmap on
how we can sustainably achieve all our development goals so in the year 2031, we can
see Surigao City transform from a 3rd class component city into a highly urbanized
gateway to Mindanao.
We identified the seven point agenda in our Masterplan as follows:

1. Tubig -- Continuous and consistent access to clean, clear and potable water for
households and commercial/industrial spaces.
2. Trabaho -- Livelihood Projects which will allow people to immediately rebuild their
lives post-pandemic and post-Super Typhoon Odette.
3. Socialized Housing - affordable na pabayay na kaya bayran nan mga Batang
Surigaonon sanan pabayay na priyoridad an mga nawad-an nan bayay tungod sa
pandemya sanan sa Odette
4. Effective and Efficient Delivery of Social Services na nakafocus sa health, programa
para sa mga kabatan-onan, seniors citizens sanan sa mga marginalized sectors of
society sama sa ato LGBT community
5. Bridging Communities through Infrastructure Development sama sa pagtukod nan
mga tulay sanan mga dayan sa mga kaislahan sanan sa mga lagjo na mga barangay
diri sa mainland sanan pagtukod nan mga facilities na makatabang para mabarato an
ato pagkaon sama sa mga Sistema nan irigasyon, mga tyangge, sanan an mga farm to
market roads.
6. Tourism and Industry -- kay ako nagtuo na an komersyo mabuhi kun vibrant an ato
turismo
7. Sanan paggamit sa modernong teknolohiya para ato maabot an tinuod na kalamboan.

Dugangan ko lamang nan ika-walo, an pagtabang sa pagpaubos nan presyo nan ato
kuryente.

Inin PD Masterplan 2031 sajon ra ini isulti isip isa ka konsepto. Dili nato ini maabot kun
dili nato paresan nan PULIDO na TRABAHO, sanan DEKALIDAD na SERBISYO. It
means that it is very important to pursue excellence in everything we do in government.
Amo ini an tatak nan SERBISYONG BATANG SURIGAONON.

Sa sugod nan kampanya an ako tagpangajo sa ijo tanan dili ra kun an ijo suporta. Sige
balitaw nako balik-balikon, ajaw ako nijo suportahe, IBANI AKO NIJO kay dili ini tanan
kaya ra nan isa ka tawo. Allow me to tweak JFK’s famous words, “Ask not what your
city can do for you -- instead, ask what you can do for your city.”

An SERBISYONG BATANG SURIGAONON is marked by excellence and the only

thing I ask all of you is that we choose to wake up every day realizing we have an
important role to play; like something as simple as not throwing garbage on the streets or
choosing not to double park is already a big impact na makatabang sa pagbalik nan
kagana nan Surigao.

My role as your new Mayor is to help empower all of you and help build a city that
would give you the capacity to hope. Hope is such a powerful thing because it moves
people into action. I believe in everyone’s light. And if people allow their lights to shine,
it will empower others to do the same.

Do remember however, that Paul Dumlao is not your hope; but Paul Dumlao will use all
of his force to help you achieve your dreams. Amo ini an pangandoy na ako tagshare sa
mga Batang Surigaonon Youth. My job is not just to be a leader, but to make more
leaders. My job is to help create a system that would inspire more people to become the
catalysts of the change they want to see.

The road ahead will not be easy. Daku an trabahuon in the next three years. I can even
honestly say that the entire system of governance in Surigao is in need of a complete
overhaul. But I am excited to begin the work.

I ask all my fellow public servants and the people in government to always work with
transparency and accountability. Our people need us now more than ever.

To the barangay leaders who are present here today, I urge you put your loyalty to your
people. Live by your oath to serve without fear or favor.

Thank you to everyone who had faith in the message of our campaign. Even if we were
the clear underdogs, you stood by all of us on the strength of our message. We can only
pray to remain worthy of that trust that you so overwhelmingly bestowed upon all of us.
However, I also ask all of you to be patient with your government kay dapat sa panahon
nan kalisud wayay lain magtinabangay kun dili kita tanan na mga Batang Surigaonon.
Wayay lain mupayangga nan Surigao kun dili kita tanan mga Batang Surigaonon. Let us
all do our share in rebuilding Surigao and bringing it back into the world map as a City of
Island Adventures. Kay sa tinud-anay pa an Surigaonon, mapagarbohon sa lupa na
taghatag sa ija na tinuod na masaaron.

This new journey I am about to embark with all of you will be long and difficult but I
trust the divine providence that brought all of us here. After all, the Great Architect of the
Universe makes everything beautiful in its time. To God be the greatest glory.

Maradjaw na buntag, mga Batang Surigaonon! Mabuhay kita tanan!