When first asked about
this in the early part of June, Governor Petilla said that he is
giving it a thought but he will first inform President Aquino about
it. That time, he was scheduled to meet the President elect on a
Friday. He said he will inform the President about it and he will
respect the decision of the President.
Governor Petilla has
already talked to President Aquino about this, thus, he has decided to
seek the position.
This is not the first
time that the Leyte Governor is being encouraged to run as the
chairman of the highest planning body for Region 8. In fact, in 2007,
he was the more popular choice but he did not push through with the
idea when he learned that then President Arroyo has already committed
the post to Mayor Mel Senen Sarmiento of Calbayog City.
Governor Petilla is
respected by his colleagues because of his no nonsense development
orientation. In fact, he has the support of most if not all of the
governors in Eastern Visayas.
He envisions
reinvigorating the tourism industry not only of
Leyte but that of the entire Region which has been identified to
be part of the Central Philippines Tourism center. This will open many
employment opportunities to the people of Region 8.
Governor Icot who is
in his third and last term as governor, also hopes to continue to
invite investors to the Region particularly the ICT sector for
business process outsourcing and call centers, as this will also
generate jobs.
Noting that Eastern
Visayas has remained to be an agricultural region, Governor Petilla is
for the development of agriculture by tooling the farmers to enable
them to produce more and earn more through diversifying to other
agri-business.
Being the RDC chairman
would enable Governor Petilla to tutor other provinces on programs
which have been tested in Leyte and have been proven to be effective.
Based on Executive
Order 325, the President appoints the
RDC chairman and co-chairman from among the nominees submitted
by the Council. The number of nominees includes at least two local
chief executives and two private sector representatives.
The RDC 8 is composed
of regional directors of various government departments, local
government executives from governors to mayors of capital towns,
president of mayors’ leagues, city mayors and private sector
representatives.
The RDC-8, which
counts 96 members, serves, among others, as a policy and recommending
body related to programs and projects in the region that needs
support, mostly funding, from the national government.
The RDC is expected to
conduct election of PSRs in July, ready for the election of the
chairman and co-chairman in August or September.
