12 TACLOBAN TRANSFORMS
ALFRED SISON
ROMUALDEZAlfredSisonRomualdezwasborninSanJuan,
Manila.HisfatherAlfredoT.Romualdezisthe
brotherofthefirstladyMadamImelda.The
RomualdezesarenativesofLeytewhoregard
both Tolosa and Tacloban as their hometown.
HehasbeenservingasMayorofTaclobanCity
since 2008. (www.tacloban.gov.ph)settlements as a whole, means “Kabatok’s property”. Among the activities
slated for this coming June 2015 are the Sangyaw Festival Opening and
the Sangyawan Ha Tacloman, held in the City Hall grounds.
Of all the landmarks in our city, the one that never fails to give me
pause is the majestic San Juanico Bridge (also known as the Marcos
Bridge), which connects the provinces of Samar and Leyte. Stretching
some two kilometres, it is the longest bridge in the Philippines and
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of whirlpools, as well as the islets of the province. It is also dubbed “the
Bridge of Love”, as the late Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos
dedicated it to his wife, Imelda, a native of Leyte who was known as
the “Rose of Tacloban”. How very heartening it is to know that this
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Haiyan. Operational after the storm had passed, the bridge continued
to serve as the primary means for the people of Samar to check on their
relatives residing in Tacloban City.
Our distinctive heritage, culture, religious faiths and even the
basic precepts of humanity teach us the most fundamental and natural
instinctive responses. In spite of the challenges of restoration, local
people remain privileged to inhabit the entire 10,000 hectares of this
beautiful area, characterised by rolling plains in the outskirts and
sparkling jet-black sandy beaches unparalleled for skimboarding.
Today, Tacloban City has committed itself to the formation of what
we call the new normal of our lives: transforming our dreams into the
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communities designed, built and lived in as humane habitats that we can
now call “our new home”. AGP04 San Juanico Bridge: The 2.16- kilometre
bridge, connecting the islands of Leyte and
Samar, is the longest and most beautifully
designed bridge in the Philippines. It also serves
as a vital link between the northern and southern
Philippines via the Pan-Philippine Highway04