Isko

HI Isko!

It’s been a while. We were together in the senatorial slate of Sen. Grace Poe and Sen. Chiz Escudero, back in 2016. I loved listening to your life story then, and to see it unfold in the brightest direction now is truly amazing. Your journey from the slums of Tondo to the edifice of city hall is proof that nothing is impossible.

I see some facets of my father in you. He was a poor boy from Hagonoy who had to work as a stevedore at North Harbor. Unable to pay for college, Ka Blas found intellectual redemption in books and public libraries. You are a student of life, having finished high school, seeking higher learning when your life got better and upon the advice of your mentor, the kind-hearted Mayor Danny Lacuna.

Now you are the mayor and father of the nation’s most historic city. As you do your best to improve Manila while preserving its character, know that the world is your audience. For most foreigners, the Philippines is Manila. I am glad that you are giving our capital city a good scrub, and ecstatic that the Manila Zoo revival is high on your list of priorities.

But keep your feet on the ground and your ears always open. Do not succumb to the secluded bliss of having a cordon sanitaire. They will try their best to protect you but also because this gives some of them the power to strut. And, strut they will.

You know Manila like no one else will. You have infinite stories to tell about your childhood and growing up years. Being an actor may have given you the skills and aptitude to communicate, but those stories are all yours. Use them. Keep reminding young people not to fear big dreams, because the bigger dreams are the best ones to catch.

Tap the best minds regardless of political persuasion. Don’t hesitate to ask the best of the best a multitude of questions. Remember the learning atmosphere at the Kennedy School of Government?  Be fierce in putting together an education program of that caliber not just for the young people but also even for our senior citizens. As my father used to say, education is for life.

Have a job count. Everyday. How many of your constituents were able to secure a job interview in Manila-based companies? How many more can be hired if only they are prepped well enough to pass that golden interview? New jobs created mean more revenues for the household and the city. It is the proverbial tide that will lift all boats. Come up with an online Trabaho Central. Know who your workers are per barangay. With technology, everything is possible.

Also, please know this. Illegal recruitment thrives inside your territory. There are a lot of licensed recruitment agencies that are foreign-owned, with several foreigners occupying tables and interviewing recruits, a practice that is very much against existing POEA rules. Declare a war on illegal recruitment, and all recruitment agencies operating within your city must also be required to obtain city permits for the accommodations where domestic workers applying for jobs overseas are kept. Humane conditions must prevail, even if these houses or tenements are rented by recruitment agencies.

Welcome our tourists back to Manila. Some of them may still remember the Luneta hostage-taking incident. Develop new experiences for them to savor—have the best city tours in Asia. Make every historical and tourist site, “Instagrammable.” Free use of selfie sticks for tourists that they can just pick up and return before they leave, personalized welcome cards from the mayor for every tourist that checked in at a Manila-based hotel, and midnight walks along Fort Santiago with troubadours that can serenade couples with our best kundimans—your city can rival the best of the best when it comes to memorable experiences.

I do worry about you. I worry that all the high-octane publicity would wear you out, or even wear us out. We know that in politics, the higher you rise, the greater and more dramatic the fall. Avoid the fall. Do not be sucked in by all these talks about the presidency. You were one of the hardest-working senatorial candidates in 2016. I really thought you would make it. Now it is clear why it was not meant to be. God had His reasons. Trust Him.

Local government now has a national face and it’s yours. So shine!

I am sure that you have no shortage of people offering you advice. I am sorry to be adding myself to this list. Because of you, we have become emotionally invested in the transformation of Manila. So stay away from the pettiness of previous political skirmishes. Dream biggest now. You have an entire city to care for. From the time you were born, the poetry of a remarkable life runs in your veins, so make it rhyme and offer each verse to the Lord. Never forget that Isko is His creation. Make Him and all of us proud.

Congratulations and Good luck!

Toots