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Port Orchard, Washington
USA
November 6, 2002
The Sanguniang Bayan
Municipality of Pandan
Antique, Philippines
Dear Honorable Members of the Sanguniang Bayan:
As a native Pandananon, I am deeply perturbed by the news about the proposed NACOPOR power plant in Patria. I can foresee the inevitable destruction of lives and property if the power plant becomes a reality.
It would indeed become a shameless waste of human lives and natural resources, and a flagrant abuse of power. How can the importance of the preservation and protection of humanity and nature's bounty become second fiddle to a power plant that superficially looks harmless and beneficial but, as research findings prove, is actually a harbinger of disease, death, and suffering?
With the justifiable oppositions brewing in your midst, should you turn deaf and blind to their claims, or are you going to show them that you are indeed their chosen leaders who have pledged to act on their behalf? Empowerment on you by the people and from the people constitutes your responsibility towards them. Seeking and winning the election guarantees your acceptance of such responsibility, and this responsibility to look after their welfare transcends personal gains and preferences. Empowerment also holds you accountable for your judgments, decisions, and actions. They are not only a matter of conscience, but also a matter of greatest challenge on your integrity and loyalty towards your constituents.
Although we no longer reside in Pandan, as native Pandananons we still hold our hometown close to our hearts and mind and therefore feel strongly about protecting and preserving it. We owe this to Pandan and its surrounding areas because our lives progressed onward with the slow, methodical certainty that came from living in this beautiful, safe town. So we put special relevance to the proposed NACOPOR power plant and its impending threat to our beloved town and loved ones.
If we have become anything since we left Pandan, it is the Pandananons of seekers. We search for answers to questions and solutions to problems, for deeper meaning and purpose in our lives, and for ways to understand and combat our human fragility. That is why we have Pagtatap USA, Pandan Antique Foundation, and Pagtatap Hongkong.
As one of the advisers of Pagtatap USA and as Public Relations Officer of Pandan Antique Foundation, I assure you that I have expressed in this letter the prevailing sentiments of my fellow Pandananons living abroad.
Justice is being sought here. Where does the deliverance of justice begin and how will it end? Will such justice be granted? It's your call.
Very truly yours,
(SGD.) THELMA MANTAC RAMOS
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