By Alex P. Vidal
“If nominated, I will not run; if elected, I will not serve.”—William Tecumseh Sherman
IF Iloilo City Mayor Geronimo “Jerry” Treñas will continue to focus his energy and time as a pro-active local chief executive and retains his distinction as the top performing mayor in Western Visayas, the Marcos administration might think twice if it will field a strong candidate against him in the 2025 mayoral race.
Treñas recently garnered 86.7 percent to top the latest survey conducted by the RP-Mission Development Foundation Inc. (RPMD) besting 14 other mayors in the region.
The Marcos administration will most likely support Vice Mayor Jeffrey Ganzon, who went all-out for then “presidential candidate BBM”, if Ganzon decides to run against Treñas.
The speculations that President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. will field one of his sons in an elective position in Iloilo City will remain a speculation until both the father Marcos Jr. and First Lady Marie Louise “Liza” Araneta-Marcos will themselves confirm and announce it.
If true, it will be most likely in the congressional office.
Either a Marcos son will collide versus incumbent Rep. Julienne “Jam” Baronda (who ironically also went for then “presidential candidate BBM” in the 2022 presidential election), or a second district in Iloilo City “will be created” through a legislation to accommodate the Marcos son.
Again, everything will remain a speculation until the political grapevine finally reveals the real cards.
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We encourage qualified Filipinos to check this program by the United States Department of State.
In 2023, as part of ongoing efforts to increase the global impact of U.S. Department of State exchange programs, the Department’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs (ECA) will award 259 small grants to recent International Visitor Leadership Program (IVLP) alumni from 103 countries.
The IVLP is the Department’s premier professional exchange program, bringing current and emerging foreign leaders in a variety of fields to the United States to experience it firsthand and cultivate lasting relationships with their American counterparts. ECA’s IVLP Impact Awards initiative provides follow-on support to alumni to build on their exchange experience in the United States and implement innovative and meaningful projects to address challenges and promote opportunities in their home communities all over the world.
The 2023 impact project themes will cover key U.S. and partner nation foreign policy priorities, including promoting media literacy and countering disinformation, advancing climate solutions, supporting democratic governance, and more.
Individual alumni will receive up to $5,000 USD each to implement their projects.
Since the IVLP Impact Award initiative’s launch in 2022, over 200 IVLP alumni recipients have implemented impact projects, inspired by their exchange experience in the United States, to effect positive changes at home.
The IVLP Impact Awards is an initiative of the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs and is supported in its implementation by Meridian International Center. For press inquiries, please contact the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs at ECA-Press@state.gov. To learn more about the IVLP Impact Awards and its recipients, please visit: https://eca.state.gov/ivlp/ivlp-impact-awards.
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Twitter’s ad revenue has dropped by 50 percent in recent weeks as concerns mount over Elon Musk’s chaotic control of the social media platform. Some investors and lawmakers have grown increasingly worried that the disorder has spilled over into Musk’s management of Tesla, one the most influential electric car companies in the US. This week, Democratic Sen. Elizabeth Warren asked the SEC to investigate Tesla and its board of directors for possible “conflicts of interest, misappropriation of corporate assets, and other negative impacts to Tesla shareholders.”
(The author, who is now based in New York City, used to be the editor of two daily newspapers in Iloilo.—Ed)
