Pangasinenses led by Speaker Jose de Venecia paid tribute to the late Governor Aguedo F. Agbayani, the son of a carpenter who went on to become the longest serving governor of the province. 

De Venecia led on Thursday the unveiling of the Agbayani’s monument at the park named in his honor, in this capital town, together with Agbayani’s widow Teresita, his son Governor Victor Agbayani and his wife Jamie and other members of the Agbayani family.. 

            De Venecia described Agbayani who was governor from 1971 to 1986 and from 1992-1995, as a “quintessential” leader “who was able to bridge the gap between the rich and the poor in Pangasinan and who was able to develop a strong middle class society in the province.” 

            “He was not only a great Pangasinense, but a great Filipino who served the nation well,” the Speaker said.  

Agbayani was born in the village of Pangapisan North to a carpenter who migrated to this town from Ilocos Norte in the early 1990s to work at the Capitol which was being constructed at that time.   

Despite poverty, Agbayani became a hardworking scholar, a student leader, law professor and author. He was first elected into public office in 1957 as congressman of the first district of Pangasinan.   

A gifted leader and a debater and  known for his common touch with the masses, was reelected consecutively in 1961, 1965 and 1969.   

Provincial Board Member elect-Alfonso Bince said the monument should serve as a reminder to future governors of the province that public office is a public trust. 

 “Agbayani is a leader that every Pangasinense should be proud of,” Bince said, adding that he was the first Pangasinense who graduated from the University of the Philippines College of Law cum laude.  

            Agbayani’s monument was established more than three years after his death on October 23, 2003, at the Governor Aguedo Agbayani Park in front of the Capitol. 

            His son Victor, the outgoing governor and incoming congressman of the second district, narrated that after the statue was installed last weekend, “there was a drizzle and then a full rainbow appeared in the sky – an extraordinary blessing from the heaven.” 

            Victor said that the park, formerly known as Capitol grounds, was developed as a part of the master plan to develop the historic and scenic Capitol area. 

            He hoped that the monument that “celebrates Aguedo’s life and achievements and what he stood for, teach the young and remind the old of the ideals of hardwork and integrity, selfless service, compassion for the less fortunate, and genuine love of country.”            

“Let us walk in the footsteps and ideals of Aguedo and today pledge anew to render true service to the province and country in whatever role, big and small, grand or humble, given us by our Creator and let us pray that by the grace of God, we will make a difference in uplifting the lives of the people,” he said. 

In an emotional speech, Agbayani narrated how, 50 fifty ago in 1957, the year that he was born, his parents wrestled with the decision of whether or not to enter politics, with his father as a candidate for congressman of the first district of the Pangasinan.  

            “A major concern (for them) was whether or not they could thrive in politics where even the basic principles can be the subject of compromise.” 

            But the couple decided to enter public service but they made a solemn agreement between themselves that if the time came when political survival would entail sacrificing one’s principles, it would be time for them to leave politics. 

            “Indeed, what good will it be for a man to gain power and position but forfeit his soul,” Agbayani said, quoting a passage from the Bible. 

            He said 50 decades later, politics have changed into a form so different, perhaps unrecognizable to the generation of (his father). “During his time, a man’s worth was measured by his loyalty and word of honor and one’s vote and he ballot was sacred. Today, loyalty, one’s vote and the ballot are made instruments of trade.” 

            He said however that these evils did not exit before as “after all they are as old as the Bible; as old as the 30 pieces of silver that Christ was betrayed for. But if in generations past they were the exception, today many will say that they are fast becoming the rule.”  

            He quoted from his father’s inaugural address in 1971 the pledge that he would govern with a “leadership that conceives of public office as a trust, not a privilege; as a duty not as power; as a responsibility not authority; and as an instrument of service to the people, not self-aggrandizement.”