The Market Monitor Minding the Nation's Business
By Jonathan P. Gesmundo
Doris E. Maniquiz – known to the more than 67,000 residents of Botolan, Zambales as Nanay Bing – originally did not belong to a political family.
In 1987, she left her low-paying job as an Engineering Instructor at MAPUA Institute of Technology (earning P2,500 a month) to devote her time at the hardware owned by her parents.
She learned the ropes of government contracting from her father and with help from her husband who was an engineer, eventually providing more than enough for her family.
From that successful family business and comfortable life, she was thrust into politics when her mentor, retired Gen. Hermogenes Ebdane, Jr. (incumbent Zambales governor and former Public Works Secretary) convinced her to run for Botolan mayor in 2013.
Since then, she managed to place Botolan into the local tourism map, promoting not just trekking to the crater of Mount Pinatubo but also hidden gems within the municipality.
There’s Tukal-tukal waterfalls (four layers), Botolan Wildlife Farm, the stretch of beach at barangay Binoclutan which is a sea turtle hatching ground, and of course Mount Pinatubo trekking.
Maniquiz even takes pride at their local Botolan suman, always to be eaten with home-made latik.
Attracting visitors up to half a million annually is the Fiesta Poon Bato held every January in honor of a carved wooden statue of the Virgin Mary discovered in the 17th century.
Maniquiz succeeded at developing local tourism (indicated by the impressive rise of Botolan’s annual income from less than P10 million in 2013 to more than P50 million by 2021) after she was challenged by the popularity of Iba (provincial capital) as a favorite tourist destination with its long stretch of beach resorts.
When Maniquiz shifted from a businesswoman to public official, she was equipped with that knack for attention to details, so she immediately rehabilitated the public market and municipal hospital. After three terms, a new market has risen next to the new municipal hall and public plaza while the two-storey public hospital (Dr. Florentino C. Doble Memorial Hospital) is now getting an extension building.
A modern evacuation center is also being built, courtesy of PAGCOR, to be used especially by native aetas (who comprise more than 20% of local residents) in times of calamity. She always has a soft spot for aetas who are able to produce highly marketable handicraft products from native materials, given the proper support and incentive.
After she won a seat at the House of Representatives at the May 2022 elections – as representative of Zambales 2nd District – she brings her nine years of micro-managing the various concerns of Botolan to the complex and tedious process of law-making at the Lower House as a neophyte congresswoman.
She looks forward to a wider latitude at using congressional funds at her disposal to benefit not just Botolan but also the 10 municipalities under Zambales’ 2nd district, including Iba. She recalls how as a mayor she had to scrounge for funds for various municipal projects, being dependent on the municipal’s Internal Revenue Allotment (IRA) as well as funds allocated by line departments from the executive branch.
As mayor or lawmaker, she cites her father as her moral anchor. With an OFW father and a Nurse turned businesswoman, as mother, Maniquiz gave high premium to her untarnished family reputation which remained intact throughout her stint as mayor.
When she dives into lawmaking, she vows to keep the common good as a constant guide-post when drafting or voting for bills.
She definitely has lots of first-hand knowledge of common good with her daily interaction with residents of Botolan.
The House of Representatives will not only have a mother figure in their midst but also a deeply grounded solon who knows her constituents by heart.
This evolution from local chief executive to lawmaker puts the Honorable Representative Maniquiz at a distinct advantage of making a difference at her new role.