Gerardo Sabinay Espina Sr.

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Former Mayor, Kawayan, Biliran Former Congressman 10th, 11th and 12th Congress.
Was also Deputy Speaker 11th Congress, Chairman, Committee on Public Information,
10th Congress and Majority Leader, Commission on Appointments, 12th Congress
Former National Spokesperson, League of Municipalities of the Philippines
President, League of Municipalities of the Philippines-Biliran Chapter
Former Mayor, Municipality of Naval, Biliran Province,

Gerardo “Gerry” S. Espina, Sr. is a recipient of three US scholarship grants, the Smith/Mundt, Ford Foundation and Fulbright scholarships all at the same time, 1962-1964, University of Oregon, USA. A self-made man, he was a ward of Boys Town Orphanage as a young boy, his father having died during the Second World War. He did odd jobs to support himself through high school and college yet, was an outstanding student leader, scholar and campus journalist.

Well known all over Metro Manila where he was a tri-media journalist and where he was elected in 1971 and 1978 as Manila Constitutional Convention delegate and Assemblyman respectively, he decided to relocate to Biliran province in 1994 when Biliran, his birthplace and a former sub-province of Leyte province, became a regular province in 1992.

He therefore holds the distinction of being the first elected Congressman of Biliran and perhaps the only one who has experienced representing in the Legislature an urban and a rural constituency. In the nine years that he was in congress, he was well respected and admired as an eloquent and articulate speaker and a very effective debater. In the words of Mayor Sonny Belmonte of Quezon City who was a colleague of Gerry for several years “Gerry is the only one in Congress I know who delivers eloquent speeches without codigo”, a quotation from an item which appeared in the Philippine Free Press.

In the province of Biliran, most of the national circumferential and cross country roads were cemented when he became congressman of the province. All barangays practically were given electricity; 234 school rooms were built all over the province. Also, all 132 barangay roads became mostly concrete, a total of 104.220574 Km.

Hundreds received college scholarships; one in fact finished medicine and is now in the U.S., the daughter of Mr. Apolinario Gervacio.

As a member of the Interim Batasang Pambansa from 1978-1984 and its Assistant Majority Leader, then President Marcos who had a keen sense of getting brilliant minds to join his executive team, also appointed Gerry as concurrent Deputy Minister of Trade & Industry, Minister of State for Labor, Administrator of EPZA now PEZA, and member of the Presidential Special Committee on Government Reorganization.

Presently three of his children are elected officials of Biliran province while his eldest son is the City Auditor of the City of Pasay. A daughter is an ortho dentist who has a dental clinic in Burbank, California, USA for about 20 years now while also operating a clinic at the 2nd Floor, Vira Mall, Greenhills, San Juan hence, she travels to and from Los Angeles, USA several times a year.

Wayne’s World

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By RJ C. Baliza

The six-foot tall giant approached me with an extended hand. Etched on his face was wisdom that came from 62 years of living on this earth, yet this grip was firm, the handshake vigorous.

govwaynejaroDressed in a plain white shirt and won-out trousers, Gov. Wayne McFarland Jaro and his wife Amelia invited me into their home. For two days, they accommodated me and photographer Erik Liongoren, showed us a good time.

The Governor is the youngest in a brood of four from the first wife. He was barely a month old when his mother died. His father remarried his mother’s youngest sister. It was then that he became known as Wayne.

“My stepmother was an avid fan of the Duke, si John Wayne. Eh sa school, masyado raw mahaba ang pangalan ko kaya pinaikli niya, kaya naging Wayne.” he relates with amusement.

Perhaps it was the presence of his aides that caused him to hesitate to divulge his real name; nonetheless, he did. “It’s Winnifred.” he says, his laugther echoing through the room.

Gov. Jaro is a man of many faces. He is a dentist by profession (graduated from the University of the East), a businessman by avocation and a Colonel by appointment (he served under President Fidel Ramos during the former days as a general), but of these, his most cherished title is father.

He is father to nine children, six boys and three girls, all of them grown up, all professionals in their own right except for the youngest who is still in school.

Gov. Jaro settled in Bacolod when he graduated from college. It was during his tenure there that he met his wife. However, being a dentist day in and day out eventually wore him down. It was then that he decided to go into business.

Gov. Jaro, with NFA Provincial Manager Francisca Mercado, Inspecting rice stock levels and monitoring prices of basic commodities at the Naval Commercial Area.

“Business came naturally to me. I don’t know why, pero I enjoy it. And learned a lot from it that I’m able to apply to my job as governor.” he says. Presently, Gov. Jaro is also Chairman of the Board of Protectors Security Agency, one of the premier security agencies in the country.

He is the first to admit that he speaks his mind, a trait which probably came from his grandfather, one of the first settlers in Maripipi, Matthew McFarland.

His recreation is working. He says he is not happy when he is just lying around, accomplishing nothing. “I feel better when I get tired at the end of the day because it means the day was wasted.”

He became governor in 1992 by appointment and retained the position when he was elected in 1995. Since then, Biliran has seen tremendous growth, from virtual wasteland to an up-and-coming metro province. He believes in his province, and his people believe in him.

He knows he has a herculean task ahead task ahead of him, but he doesn’t mind. He’s done such a great job boosting Biliran to its present state. He knows that this is just part of the package. He is doing everything for his beloved Biliran. After all, it is his world.

About the Author: RJ C. Baliza
MagNegosyo
Published by the Technology and Livelihood Resource Center a government corporation under the Office of the President, Republic of the Philippines his excellency Fidel V. Ramos. February 1997 page 19