AN OPEN LETTER TO GOVERNOR ERICO
I am constrained to write this open letter in order to set the facts straight or else the people who received the letters containing the lies and manufactured stories that you sent to all municipal and barangay officials of the Province of Bohol will believe in you. Not content with spreading those lies in Bohol, you had the nerve to have your lies published in the leading newspapers in the country â€" again, to mislead the people.
It is obvious that such scheme of publishing a letter circulating the same to the various officials is part of your propaganda style to destroy your opponents, you mask the truth behind the lies that you meticulously planned as part of your grand deceptive scheme to intentionally spread to the unsuspecting people of Bohol as your way of destroying the then Gov. Rene Relampagos â€" by spreading that he had a mansion in Baclayon, gained PhP 55million of the Joint Venture Agreement for the Tagbilaran City’s power and water. Nine years after, your lies were proven false. And now you have designed the same style of assault to destroy my character and person.
But the truth will always prevail and those who spread lies, half truths and withhold the truth to deceive the people shall be directly accountable to God.
You cannot make a good person bad by simply accusing him of deeds he never had committed. Let people watch what a person does and they will believe. This makes the difference between reputation and character. Reputation is what people say about a person, but character is what a person really is. The character of Edgar Chatto is what you do not see.
I have dedicated my life to public service and was given recognition for the services I have selflessly delivered to the people. In some point during our terms of office, you, too, were recognized for a service rendered.
All three congressmen had supported you throughout the nine (9) years of your administration, but it is surprising, in fact, unbelievable that then through those years, you were nurturing a hurt and would avenge this resentment by accusing me of acts I have never committed.
It is very sad to hear you accusing me of having been a traitor for things I have no full control of â€" the votes given you in the past elections. You know very well that you lost in Balilihan in the elections of 2001 and 2004. COMELEC records show that in the 2001 election, you lost in Balilihan by 2,253 votes when then I as the Vice Governor and Gov. Relampagos were in tandem. Relampagos lost in the Bohol-wide count. In your 2004 rematch with Relampagos when you were already the governor, you lost to Relampagos by only 52 votes in Balilihan. Hence, you won 2,201 more votes in Balilihan over the same opponent in your second and final fight. You got the additional huge vote when you and I joined on account of the then unification. And these are facts, yet you like to repeat it with the malicious intent to poison the minds of your readers and listeners. Now that we are not in the same party, you would like to call me a traitor, but when you needed my help and that of my fellow congressmen to ask for funds and other assistance from President Arroyo and the Nat’l Gov’t, I was your greatest ally.
My humility and what I am have never changed since I was born with these gifts for which I will always be thankful to God. Since I was young, it has always been my nature to work with people and now I am spreading a shared development agenda with the Padayon Bol-anon members of Lakas Kampi CMD for the development in the province of Bohol. I see to it that it balances with the contemporary needs of our people without compromising the livelihood of future generations. This means that the conservation of the environment is a primary consideration of our governance in all of its development initiatives.
There shall be full consultations with the people in development without encroaching into their source of basic livelihood and threaten the ecology of the environment, such as, the Panglao Reclamation Project, Danajon Seaweeds Development Project, the Seismic Testing in various parts of the province or the Water Deal that shall bring the water of Bohol to the province of Cebu. Padayon Bol-anon will work to make Bohol a place we can truly be proud of â€" beautiful, economically progressive, and most of all, united in the determination to empower the people as the key to genuine development.
The group of Padayon Bol-anon will further work within the process of development that must arise from selfless servant leadership â€" a politics which honors and encourages collective decision-making, involving the various sectors for transparency in governance to foster more trust in the government for faster and sustainable economic growth.
I am saddened with your baseless accusation that I have caused the delay of the Panglao Bohol International Development because now, people have asked you if you should honor your statement that you will from your post as Governor if the airport project will not push through before the election period. You know the truth behind the delays and you owe it to the Boholanos to tell them the truth instead of making me your scapegoat of another unfulfilled promise to the Boholanos.
You have also been a Congressman for nine years and you know very well the work of a legislator. I help agencies find allocations for the various projects that they need. I have never been involved in the execution of projects even if I helped source out funding, if that is what you are insinuating that I have been doing. Do not paint me with the deeds that you do with your active involvement in the selection of winning bidders in your projects including the imminent winner of the soon to commence Panglao Airport earthworks.
In my nine years as Congressman, the DPWH conducts the bidding for road and building construction. The Department of Education conducts the implementation of the Information Technology and Computerization programs. I am saddened by the fact that instead of emulating my contributions to the computer education of our young children and the youth, you want to deceive the people with the wrong information with the hope of swinging their votes to your favored candidate. That is very sad if the Boholanos would continue to be deceived by your lies and machinations. Being the Governor you should know how much a licensed computer software would cost in order to teach Mathematics, different Science subjects and English through the computer. Yet, you want to tell the lie by saying that only the computer is worth the amount. What values and virtues are you modeling to our youth? No amount of physical development could retrieve the values you have distorted for your selfish motives.
Now, that it is my turn to offer my services to the people of Bohol, and should the people give me the mandate to be the next governor, I would first put aside the issues hurled against me and go ahead with my plans I have set up what would insure a better life for every Boholano. In the meantime, I would put in abeyance the temptation to dig into the truth behind the cases of the various anomalies involving your office such as:
1) BAYONGAN DAM- MOST EXPENSIVE DAM. According to Secretary Romulo Neri the then Director General of the National Economic Development Authority, that the Bayongan Dam is the most expensive dam ever built in the world that costs the government to lose by more than PhP3.6 billion . You have defended this project. The late Press Sec. Cerge Remonde even claimed that you made several follow-ups and guarded the issuance of the checks, and you seek his assistance .
2) PhP165 million Talibon Dam Scam. The Boholanos Against Corruption Oppression headed by Mr. Bod Cericos, Engr. Sarigumba and Atty. Artemio Cabatos elevated this matter to the Ombudsman.
3) MALINAO DAM SPILLWAY ANOMALY . The Malinao Dam had fell short of its original spillway height by 2.0 meters costing our government to lose by PhP1.4 billion aside from another amount about to be loaned for the cost of its upgrade amounting to PhP800 million;
4) BACKHOE/HEAVY EQUIPMENT OVERPRICE : The backhoe procured by your office had been overpriced by more than 2.8 million each according to Atty. Victor dela Serna . You and the capitol boys ADMITTED THE OVER PRICE PARTIALLY by returning around 800 thousand (Victor de la Serna proudly announce over the radio that he ordered the amount to use to purchase rice and they rice were given to the poor). Was the overprice only 800 thousand each? WHAT DID YOU DO ACTUALLY WITH THE MONEY? Ws the rice given to the poor or use for political purpose?
5) 4.2 Billion PANGLAO AIRPORT ANOMALY/CAPITOL’S DEMAND FOR 100 MILLION AS ADVANCE DAOR .
This anomaly was even the subject of a Philippine Daily Inquirer article , and was on the front page of Bohol Chronicle. Panglao Bohol Airport Development Project is worth PhP 4.2 billion had been rigged to favor certain contractors closely associated to you and which is the reason why the final bidding had been stalled because a bidding participant found a reasonable ground to file a case before the Ombudsman. The project has not started and it was reported that there was demand for 100 Million as ADVANCE COMMISSION .
When you were interviewed you claimed AT FIRST that you Mr. De Guzman, the man who allegedly execute the plan to rig the bidding, IS NOT YOUR CONSULTANT and not connected with your office. Later on, you changed your statement that he is YOUR CONSULTANT for other projects but not the Panglao Airport Project.
6) THE BOHOL CIRCUMFERENTIAL ROAD , ROAD CONSTRUCTED BY RSD AND OTHER ROAD PROJECTS:
You need to explain why many parts of the Bohol Circumferential Road Project in are being reworked due to substandard construction WHEN budget for this road is more or almost double to that of LOCALLY funded concreting projects.
The standard to be followed in the Circumferential road prosecuted by your favourite contractors Hanjin, C Pancho, China and Gorones is international standard.
Local roads which you implemented through your contractors such as RSD lower than substandard. Cracks are everywhere. From Dogohoy to Trinidad , these waste of public money is apparent. Instead of calling your close contractor to redo the work, YOU ADD NEW BUDGET and put asphalt overlay still WITH A OVERPRICE . Your contactors POCKETED A LOT OF MONEY twice.
But let us raise the discussion in this election period to a higher level instead of mudslinging and false accusations. Let us present to the people the truth that they deserve. How can we provide them with livelihood, infrastructure, food, education, health, environment, leadership development, peace and order, sports and youth development with the way we pursue our purposes? Those who throw mud have the mud in them. Let us compete in the field of competences and qualifications because these are what we truly need in order to achieve real economic development of the province. Let us not fail them. Our people deserve our honesty, sincerity and dedication to serve.
signed CONGRESSMAN EDGAR M. CHATTO
I am constrained to write this open letter in order to set the facts straight or else the people who received the letters containing the lies and manufactured stories that you sent to all municipal and barangay officials of the Province of Bohol will believe in you. Not content with spreading those lies in Bohol, you had the nerve to have your lies published in the leading newspapers in the country â€" again, to mislead the people.
It is obvious that such scheme of publishing a letter circulating the same to the various officials is part of your propaganda style to destroy your opponents, you mask the truth behind the lies that you meticulously planned as part of your grand deceptive scheme to intentionally spread to the unsuspecting people of Bohol as your way of destroying the then Gov. Rene Relampagos â€" by spreading that he had a mansion in Baclayon, gained PhP 55million of the Joint Venture Agreement for the Tagbilaran City’s power and water. Nine years after, your lies were proven false. And now you have designed the same style of assault to destroy my character and person.
But the truth will always prevail and those who spread lies, half truths and withhold the truth to deceive the people shall be directly accountable to God.
You cannot make a good person bad by simply accusing him of deeds he never had committed. Let people watch what a person does and they will believe. This makes the difference between reputation and character. Reputation is what people say about a person, but character is what a person really is. The character of Edgar Chatto is what you do not see.
I have dedicated my life to public service and was given recognition for the services I have selflessly delivered to the people. In some point during our terms of office, you, too, were recognized for a service rendered.
All three congressmen had supported you throughout the nine (9) years of your administration, but it is surprising, in fact, unbelievable that then through those years, you were nurturing a hurt and would avenge this resentment by accusing me of acts I have never committed.
It is very sad to hear you accusing me of having been a traitor for things I have no full control of â€" the votes given you in the past elections. You know very well that you lost in Balilihan in the elections of 2001 and 2004. COMELEC records show that in the 2001 election, you lost in Balilihan by 2,253 votes when then I as the Vice Governor and Gov. Relampagos were in tandem. Relampagos lost in the Bohol-wide count. In your 2004 rematch with Relampagos when you were already the governor, you lost to Relampagos by only 52 votes in Balilihan. Hence, you won 2,201 more votes in Balilihan over the same opponent in your second and final fight. You got the additional huge vote when you and I joined on account of the then unification. And these are facts, yet you like to repeat it with the malicious intent to poison the minds of your readers and listeners. Now that we are not in the same party, you would like to call me a traitor, but when you needed my help and that of my fellow congressmen to ask for funds and other assistance from President Arroyo and the Nat’l Gov’t, I was your greatest ally.
My humility and what I am have never changed since I was born with these gifts for which I will always be thankful to God. Since I was young, it has always been my nature to work with people and now I am spreading a shared development agenda with the Padayon Bol-anon members of Lakas Kampi CMD for the development in the province of Bohol. I see to it that it balances with the contemporary needs of our people without compromising the livelihood of future generations. This means that the conservation of the environment is a primary consideration of our governance in all of its development initiatives.
There shall be full consultations with the people in development without encroaching into their source of basic livelihood and threaten the ecology of the environment, such as, the Panglao Reclamation Project, Danajon Seaweeds Development Project, the Seismic Testing in various parts of the province or the Water Deal that shall bring the water of Bohol to the province of Cebu. Padayon Bol-anon will work to make Bohol a place we can truly be proud of â€" beautiful, economically progressive, and most of all, united in the determination to empower the people as the key to genuine development.
The group of Padayon Bol-anon will further work within the process of development that must arise from selfless servant leadership â€" a politics which honors and encourages collective decision-making, involving the various sectors for transparency in governance to foster more trust in the government for faster and sustainable economic growth.
I am saddened with your baseless accusation that I have caused the delay of the Panglao Bohol International Development because now, people have asked you if you should honor your statement that you will from your post as Governor if the airport project will not push through before the election period. You know the truth behind the delays and you owe it to the Boholanos to tell them the truth instead of making me your scapegoat of another unfulfilled promise to the Boholanos.
You have also been a Congressman for nine years and you know very well the work of a legislator. I help agencies find allocations for the various projects that they need. I have never been involved in the execution of projects even if I helped source out funding, if that is what you are insinuating that I have been doing. Do not paint me with the deeds that you do with your active involvement in the selection of winning bidders in your projects including the imminent winner of the soon to commence Panglao Airport earthworks.
In my nine years as Congressman, the DPWH conducts the bidding for road and building construction. The Department of Education conducts the implementation of the Information Technology and Computerization programs. I am saddened by the fact that instead of emulating my contributions to the computer education of our young children and the youth, you want to deceive the people with the wrong information with the hope of swinging their votes to your favored candidate. That is very sad if the Boholanos would continue to be deceived by your lies and machinations. Being the Governor you should know how much a licensed computer software would cost in order to teach Mathematics, different Science subjects and English through the computer. Yet, you want to tell the lie by saying that only the computer is worth the amount. What values and virtues are you modeling to our youth? No amount of physical development could retrieve the values you have distorted for your selfish motives.
Now, that it is my turn to offer my services to the people of Bohol, and should the people give me the mandate to be the next governor, I would first put aside the issues hurled against me and go ahead with my plans I have set up what would insure a better life for every Boholano. In the meantime, I would put in abeyance the temptation to dig into the truth behind the cases of the various anomalies involving your office such as:
1) BAYONGAN DAM- MOST EXPENSIVE DAM. According to Secretary Romulo Neri the then Director General of the National Economic Development Authority, that the Bayongan Dam is the most expensive dam ever built in the world that costs the government to lose by more than PhP3.6 billion . You have defended this project. The late Press Sec. Cerge Remonde even claimed that you made several follow-ups and guarded the issuance of the checks, and you seek his assistance .
2) PhP165 million Talibon Dam Scam. The Boholanos Against Corruption Oppression headed by Mr. Bod Cericos, Engr. Sarigumba and Atty. Artemio Cabatos elevated this matter to the Ombudsman.
3) MALINAO DAM SPILLWAY ANOMALY . The Malinao Dam had fell short of its original spillway height by 2.0 meters costing our government to lose by PhP1.4 billion aside from another amount about to be loaned for the cost of its upgrade amounting to PhP800 million;
4) BACKHOE/HEAVY EQUIPMENT OVERPRICE : The backhoe procured by your office had been overpriced by more than 2.8 million each according to Atty. Victor dela Serna . You and the capitol boys ADMITTED THE OVER PRICE PARTIALLY by returning around 800 thousand (Victor de la Serna proudly announce over the radio that he ordered the amount to use to purchase rice and they rice were given to the poor). Was the overprice only 800 thousand each? WHAT DID YOU DO ACTUALLY WITH THE MONEY? Ws the rice given to the poor or use for political purpose?
5) 4.2 Billion PANGLAO AIRPORT ANOMALY/CAPITOL’S DEMAND FOR 100 MILLION AS ADVANCE DAOR .
This anomaly was even the subject of a Philippine Daily Inquirer article , and was on the front page of Bohol Chronicle. Panglao Bohol Airport Development Project is worth PhP 4.2 billion had been rigged to favor certain contractors closely associated to you and which is the reason why the final bidding had been stalled because a bidding participant found a reasonable ground to file a case before the Ombudsman. The project has not started and it was reported that there was demand for 100 Million as ADVANCE COMMISSION .
When you were interviewed you claimed AT FIRST that you Mr. De Guzman, the man who allegedly execute the plan to rig the bidding, IS NOT YOUR CONSULTANT and not connected with your office. Later on, you changed your statement that he is YOUR CONSULTANT for other projects but not the Panglao Airport Project.
6) THE BOHOL CIRCUMFERENTIAL ROAD , ROAD CONSTRUCTED BY RSD AND OTHER ROAD PROJECTS:
You need to explain why many parts of the Bohol Circumferential Road Project in are being reworked due to substandard construction WHEN budget for this road is more or almost double to that of LOCALLY funded concreting projects.
The standard to be followed in the Circumferential road prosecuted by your favourite contractors Hanjin, C Pancho, China and Gorones is international standard.
Local roads which you implemented through your contractors such as RSD lower than substandard. Cracks are everywhere. From Dogohoy to Trinidad , these waste of public money is apparent. Instead of calling your close contractor to redo the work, YOU ADD NEW BUDGET and put asphalt overlay still WITH A OVERPRICE . Your contactors POCKETED A LOT OF MONEY twice.
But let us raise the discussion in this election period to a higher level instead of mudslinging and false accusations. Let us present to the people the truth that they deserve. How can we provide them with livelihood, infrastructure, food, education, health, environment, leadership development, peace and order, sports and youth development with the way we pursue our purposes? Those who throw mud have the mud in them. Let us compete in the field of competences and qualifications because these are what we truly need in order to achieve real economic development of the province. Let us not fail them. Our people deserve our honesty, sincerity and dedication to serve.
signed CONGRESSMAN EDGAR M. CHATTO
Tubag: DAGHAN NAHIMO SI CHATTO...oH.! Galanoglanog.. Nauwaw si Herrera ni walk out! Diha maila nga sa bisan unsang paagi nila pagdaut sa ngalan ni EDGAR CHATTO nagpabilin ang gugma sa mga tawo sa Tubigon ug sa uban pang lungsod sa Bohol...NAgpabilin si EDGAR sa iyang partido Lakas Kampi CMD - Padayon Bolanon kauban si Vice Gov. Conching Inday Lim, Cong Rene Relampagos, Cong Judith Cajes, Cong. Arthur Yap, PBM's Cesar Tomas Lopez, Abeleon Damalerio,Venzencio Arcamo, Brigido Imboy, Aster Piollo ug Josil Trabajo.