Posted on April 17, 2013
I am not sure when my father decided to run for a seat in the Constitutional Convention of 1971, representing the province of Palawan. My Dad was not a politician and never ran for office in his whole life. He was a manager, a technical expert, a visionary with ambitious dreams for the industrialization of his country. He commanded from his people tremendous respect and loyalty. I think my Dad ran for office as his way of giving back to his home province. He was also naively expecting that his credentials were sufficient basis for representing his province in revising the country’s constitution.
In the three weeks leading to the elections, Daddy campaigned in his northern base. With a small entourage consisting of his brother Carlos, nephew Tutit, my sister Bernie and I, my Dad spoke in rallies and to groups in Puerto Princesa, Cuyo, El Nido, Culion and of course Coron.
“India indorah lipaten akung tatay” (Don’t forget my father) Bernie and I would tell voters in small towns as we distributed leaflets. In his own spiel, my Dad would speak of his own personal history, reemphasizing the value of education. He laid out his vision of balanced development and of the importance of strong agriculture and the importance of industry in the country’s development.
Palawan, unlike now, only had a single district. The province had 2 seats in the Con-Con. In the final tally, my father won Northern Palawan but lost heavily the vote-rich South. I used to say that we won everywhere we campaigned!
My Father's Gifts 
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