Bulacan never had it so good. This province of storied churches and sprawling rice fields is on the cusp of change. And everyone is watching with keen anticipation.
On one hand is the Bulacan of tomorrow. The New Manila International Airport, also known as the Bulacan International Airport will open in 2026. Phase one of the 2,500-hectare mega airport, initiated by San Miguel Corporation, has begun. It is touted to be a ‘green’ airport, as it tackles social and environmental issues that involves the country’s main financial hubs. A proposed P50-B ‘mega city’ that covers Pandi, Bocaue and Balagtas towns is being groomed as the site of a 40-hectare economic hub. It will create 100,000 jobs for local residents. Seaports are poised to open in Obando and Hagonoy, thus creating more sources of livelihood for fresh graduates of the province.
Past and present
That’s the future. The past and the present are different. They are made up of acres and acres of rice land and backyards where people raise hogs and tend to fish pens. They are the sources of food direly needed especially during this pandemic.
Bulacan governor Daniel Fernando looks at this scenario and knows his mandate.
“Ang Bulacan ang susunod na pupuntahan sa buong mundo (Bulacan is poised to become the new global destination),” he says. “Kailangan natin balansehin ang kaunlaran at ang paggalang sa buhay (We have to balance progress with a respect for life).”
Bulacan’s main man points out that his province must not just focus on the infrastructure and development the proposed airport and others will bring with them. Yes, they are welcome. But Bulakenyos must not forget that they are anchored to the land as their source of sustenance.
“Kailangan natin magtanim para sa kasapatan ng pagkain. Kung mawalan ang ating mga bukirin, mawawalan tayo ng pagkukunan ng pagkain (We have to plant in order to eat. If we lose our rice fields, we lose our source of food).”
Survival through agriculture
Food has always been Bulacan’s source of pride and income. Before the African Swine Fever (ASF) broke out, Bulacan was the number one meat supplier in Metro Manila, which is a mere 23.7 kilometers or a little over an hour away.
Fernando aims to change this. He hopes to stage a strong comeback for Bulacan’s swine industry through aggressive measures. One is to conduct a biosafety training among backyard farmers.
The Bulacan governor believe
s the seminar will fast-track meat productivity because it arms hog farmers with health protocols. He also thinks this will protect farmers’ health in the absence of a vaccine against ASF.
Fernando adds that the provincial government is applying the Agriculture Department’s environmental swabbing (testing of food preparation surfaces, equipment and utensils using swab techniques to check for pathogens) practice to further ensure farmers’ safety.
He is also keeping a sharp eye on agriculture. After all, Bulacan’s many rice fields not just soothe the eyes. They are, more importantly, rich sources of food. Sadly, the arrival of technology-based jobs and the lure of overseas work are threatening these huge tracts of natural resources.
The provincial chief executive saw the writing on the wall as early as some 10 years ago, when he was still vice governor.
“Napakarami nating productive na mga lupaing pang-agrikultura na kailangang i-reclassify,” he recalls (We have so many agriculture lands that must be reclassified). “Nung tinanong ko ang mga magsasaka kung bakit nila binebenta ang kanilang lupain, ang sagot nila ay ayaw na ng mga anak nilang marumihan ang kanilang mga kamay. Ayaw na nilang magsaka. Gusto na ng mga anak nilang magtrabaho sa ibang bansa. Kaya’t walang magawa ang ating mga magsasaka kung hindi ibenta ang lupa nila dahil matatanda na sila (When I asked farmers why they were selling their land, they told me their children don’t want to dirty their hands. They don’t want to work on it because they’d rather work abroad. So our farmers have no choice but to sell the land because they’re getting old). ”
While he feels sad about this, Fernando doesn’t blame young people looking for greener pastures. Still, he finds the situation alarming, so alarming, he decided to act at once.
Youth power
“Dapat mas malaman ng ating kabataan ang kahalagahan ng agrikultura,” he declares (Our young people must know the importance of agriculture). “Oras na mawalan tayo ng mga magsasaka at ayaw nang magsaka ang ating mga kabataan, katapusan na natin (Once we run out of farmers because our young people no longer want to till the soil, that’s the end of us).”
Thus, when he was elected governor, Fernando put up a Farmer’s Training School in cooperation with TESDA (Technical Education and Skills Development Authority). It encouraged young people, especially those out of school, to study farming.
In his speeches, Fernando urges the youth to start planting on vacant lots, in their backyard, or whenever and wherever they have the chance. Physical school is out, he explains. So young people can start planting after their online classes.
After all, half of Bulacan’s four million population, is young. They will someday take over the reins of the province. So Fernando is doing his best to instill positive values in this early.
Fernando’s nephews and nieces, for instance, served as assistants in implementing his projects and advocacies.
The governor must have had the youth in mind when he greenlighted the construction of the Bulacan Farmer’s Productivity Center and Provincial Government Multiplier and Breeding Center on a 25-hectare land in Doña Remedios Trinidad (DRT) town.
The project also encourages farmers to breed and take care of hogs, goats, cows and carabaos. Soon, Fernando announces, his agriculture division office will build another establishment that will put what farmers have learned into practice. The new school is a multiplier and breeding center that will sharpen farmers’ animal husbandry skills. It’s also located in DRT.
This emphasis on food production echoes the governor’s belief that life takes priority attention over everything else.
Yes, the people may be earning well from their job. But everything gets wasted if their salaries or wages go straight to hospital bills, especially during the pandemic.
“Importante ang ekonomiya. Kailangan natin ito. Pero mas importante ang buhay. Hindi mo makakamit ang malakas na ekonomiya kung walang mga taong mamahala nito. (The economy is important. We need it. But life is much more valuable. You cannot achieve a strong economy without human life to run it) ,” he stresses.
Health and safety
On top of the usual health and safety protocols (curfew, social distancing, contact tracing, wearing of face shield and face masks, etc.), Bulacan, through Board Member Alex Castro, aims to be the pilot site of the country’s Universal Health Care program, which seeks to provide doctors, nurses and medicines to every barangay.
Fernando is also strengthening the hospital system by opening district hospitals in Pandi, Obando and Angat, Bulacan.
“Tinutulungan ng Ophthalmology and Visual Science Eye Center, isang division ng aming opisina, ang ating mga kababayang may cataract, glaucoma at iba pang sakit sa mata (A division in our office, the Ophthalmology and Visual Science Eye Center, helps people with cataract, glaucoma and other eye problems) ,” adds Fernando.
His dream of coming up with Bulacan’s version of Olympic champions like Hidilyn Diaz is embodied in a sports academy for local athletes.
The academy and training centers prove that this governor is a staunch supporter of lifelong learning. In fact, he took further studies at the University of the Philippines National College of Public Administration (UP-NCPAG) to be better equipped as a public servant.
Other projects
As a public servant, Fernando believes no one should be left behind where knowledge and growth are concerned. His other projects reflect this goal.
A housing program aims to provide every Bulakenyo with a roof over his head. This will supplement what the national government, under the National Housing Authority (NHA) is doing.
Fernando’s government is also big on environment protection because he misses his boyhood days, when he swam in Bulacan’s crystal-clear, blue waters. Today, he shakes his head, those blue waters have vanished. Schools of fish that used to live in it are gone. The roads easily get flooded.
Thus the emphasis on waste management and discipline in keeping rivers clean.
“Ang kailangan natin ay buhayin ang diwa ng pagmamalasakit. Walang mangyayari sa ginagawa nating paglilinis ng ating mga kailugan kung hindi ito pamamarisan ng iba (What we need is to awaken compassion among our people. Our efforts at cleaning our rivers will go to waste if others don’t do the same thing),” Fernando says, while noting that the Bulacan, Caloocan and other rivers are connected to each other.
Speaking of connections, Fernando believes building bridges of communication is essential to good govenment. So he opened a radio station that broadcasts news about his office’s programs and projects.
“Pwede namang maghatid ng kanilang karagdagang feedback at komento sa mga nangyari ang ating mga kababayan sa radio program na ito (The people can send their comments and additional feedback through the radio program),” he says.
Since he believes in feedback and consultation, Fernando maintains a Facebook account where his constituents can send comments and suggestions any time they want.
Tambalang Para sa Diyos, Tambalang Para sa Tao
He also believes in working with the youth so more people can enjoy the benefits of his programs.
Alex Castro, who is seeking the vice-governor post as Fernando’s running mate, is 35 years old. Fernando witnessed the millennial public servant’s decades-long journey from Sangguniang Kabataan (SK) chair to councilor and Board Member and is impressed.
“Nakita ko kung paano siya kumilos para sa kapakanan ng karaniwang tao. Nakita ko ang kanyang kagustuhang maging bahagi ng ating lehislatura para sa kabutihan ng higit na nakararami. Alam niya ang kanyang trabaho (I saw his concern for the welfare of ordinary people. I saw his desire to become part of our province’s legislature for the greater good. He knows his job),” observes Fernando, who calls their tandem “Tambalang Para sa Diyos, Tambalang Para sa Tao (Tandem for God and the People).”
Fernando adds that his young running mate has the stamina to create and follow through many projects for the people. Castro, so Fernando believes, is the hope of the next generation.
After all, Fernando, once upon a time, was also a youth leader. He sees himself in Castro and other young leaders who juggled their time between public service and school.
It wasn’t easy. But it was worth it.
Fernando, for one, mastered the art of running things without funds. The former chairman of the Kabataang Barangay or KB (forerunner of the Sangguniang Kabataan or SK) ran the Imee Marcos-led office without funds for four years.
“Ginastos ko ang baon ko sa paaralan (I spent my school allowance),” recalls Fernando, who is grateful that he learned the value of simplicity and sacrifice early in life.
Unlike today’s SK, which gets a budget allotment from government, the KB and its officers had to source out their own funds.
Fernando recalls those lean days which taught him resilience.
“Nagtrabaho ako mula ala-sais ng umaga hanggang alas-sais ng gabi sa factory ng papel ng isang kamag-anak (I worked from six in the morning to six at night in a relative’s paper manufacturing factory).”
It was not easy, but Fernando didn’t mind. The good son wanted to help his father support their large family.
Like the typical Filipino family, Fernando’s considered respect for elders a way of life.
During this interview, the governor added the word po now and then to his sentences.
“Napakahalaga pong magpakita tayo ng paggalang, hindi lang sa mga nakatatanda. Dapat tayong magpakita ng paggalang sa lahat (It’s very important, that we treat not just our elders with respect. We should treat everybody with respect),” he explains.
This is why he also uses the word po when addressing younger people. It’s his way of training them to speak to and treat others with respect.
Prayer power
Again, like the typical Filipino family, Fernando’s is steeped in religious tradition and practices. When he was growing up in Guiguinto, his family instilled in him the belief in divine destiny and the power of prayer.
So it was that when the people have spoken and elected him vice-governor in 2010 (he served until 2019), Fernando couldn’t believe his ears and eyes.
“Ang gusto ko lamang naman noon ay bumalik sa serbisyo publiko bilang vice mayor. Pero binigyan ako ng mas mataas pa (All I wanted was to return to public service as vice-mayor. But He gave me a higher position) ,” he recalls.
Today, as he ushers in another chapter in Bulacan’s rich history, the 59-year-old governor is banking on his faith again. Fernando knows he can’t go wrong if he has Someone Up There beside him.
So he looks heavenward for inspiration once more.
“Dapat nating ipakita sa Diyos na inaalagaan natin ang mga bagay na ipinagkaloob Niya sa atin. Dapat natin siyang purihin lagi. Dapat tayong tumawag sa Kanya palagi (We should show the Lord that we’re taking care of the things He gave us. We should always praise Him. We should always call on Him).”
Guided with this vision, the former actor (he gave a critically-acclaimed performance in the 1985 film Scorpio Nights) addresses fellow Bulakenyos.
“Maging disiplinado tayo. Mag-isip tayo ng paraan para maging kapaki-pakinabang sa kapwa nating Pilipino at sa ating pamilya (Let’s exercise discipline. Let’s think of way to be productive for our fellow Filipinos and our family)”
Fernando’s mission as the father of Bulacan continues.
