By JUNE S. BLANCO
REP. Erico Aristotle Aumentado (Bohol, 2nd District) assures the Buenavistanhons that there will be no “service vacuum” in the town in the wake of the killing last Sunday of Buenavista Mayor Ronald Lowell “Sample” Tirol.
Aumentado immediately met now Mayor Dave Duallo and the Sangguniang Bayan after the incident, for a closer look into the plans and direction the local officials, led by the late Tirol, had prepared and took.
It is now, more than ever, that the people of Buenavista need to feel that they have the support they need – even with the murder of their former mayor, the solon said.
He observed that some residents had admitted fearing for their lives when a gunman shot Tirol at close range while the latter was at the town cockpit past 3 pm last Sunday.
But while Aumentado grieves over the death of a “close and intimate friend”, he said no leader is indispensable. Change is inevitable he philosophized, because of term limits and risks like death.
But services will not be disrupted. After all, his is a people-based leadership, not leader-based. The interest of the people is paramount – not that of the leader, he said.
He says he has confidence in Duallo, another “close and intimate friend” who is now picking up the pieces where Tirol had left off. Duallo has the determination to continue his dreams and those of his father and immediate congressional predecessor, former governor and congressman Erico Boyles Aumentado, for the development of Buenavista and the 2nd District in general, he added.
On learning of Tirol’s murder, Aumentado said, “Violence has no place in modern society, especially amidst our campaign for peace in the province.”
“Even during the time of my father, unity always took precedence as a manifestation of our efforts to contain unreasonable fighting. The death of mayor sample tells us of our need for more vigilance,” he emphasized.
“I hold my mayors close to my heart, especially Mayor Sample. I will miss Sample not just as a mayor, but as a good and intimate friend,” he added.
