profiles and interview portion of Mandaue Mayoral candidates:
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Thadeo Jovito “Jonkie” Ouano
Age: 32
Occupation: Managing director, Jollibee Bogo and Carcar
Government positions previously/currently held: Special assistant to the mayor, Barangay Affairs Coordinating Office (2003-present); Director, Accident Control and Emergency Rescue Team (2003-present)
Spouse: Milanie Jo Kittilstvedt Ouano
Children: Bianca Kirsten Ouano, 4, and Amanda Deon Ouano, 2
How would you describe your leadership style? Who would you consider as your models in terms of leadership and why?
I would like to pick current world leaders. Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao has earned the reputation of being a modest, even-tempered and practical person capable of getting things done through consensus. He has guided China’s economy, supporting continued economic reform and growth but also pointedly calling for greater emphasis on social equality for those who have been left out of the country’s “economic miracle.”
In fact, this is one thrust of my platform of government– governance with a bias for the less fortunate.
Bill Gates practically changed how the whole world works today. Out-of-the-box ideas and solutions can come from anybody. I always believe in consultation and participative leadership. The best ideas may not necessarily come from top management. However, I will always have the final decision since I will be responsible for my subordinates’ actions.
Which of the city’s problems do you intend to tackle first and how?
All we need to do are basic services. Roads, streetlights, and drainage go first. These are what the people can see, touch or experience. This is what they need and I believe this is what they want too. In my first 100 days in office, I will create a task force on roads, streetlights and drainage.
A study was conducted to come up with a comprehensive solution to the drainage problem in Mandaue. The study alone costs the City around P4 million. To solve the drainage problem in Mandaue, around P5 billion is needed. However, since Mandaue’s income will never be enough to solve the drainage problem overnight, I will prioritize the areas which will need much attention. I will base it on the study that Mandaue City has ordered. I will focus my energy on these three critical issues: roads, streetlights and drainage.
What do you intend to do about the City’s debts?
It is a matter of sound financial management and that’s where my management skills come in. No private corporation can operate without loans to secure capital. The public sector is no exception.
The city’s debts are mostly spent on self-liquidating projects that not only earn revenue for the city but also enhance its competitiveness in terms of infrastructure and basic services.
The public market is envisioned to be one of the most modern among LGUs. Aside from earning for the city, it will also repay the loan by itself. The Bagsakan Center will give direct access to farm products and cut down on middlemen to bring the prices of farm products down. This will benefit not only Mandauehanons but the rest of the metropolis.
Of course, there are projects that are not directly revenue-generating like roads, drainage, streetlights but its returns will be in form of attracting more investments that will increase revenues for the city and translate into more jobs for Mandauehanons.
You cannot wait for revenue to accumulate to be used as capital; it will stagnate the growth of a company or the city. That’s why the city needs a good manager with a proven track record in management.
Unlike Cebu City, our debt has not reached the billion-peso mark. It is nowhere near the P6-billion debt of Cebu City. And we are not paying P1.7 million a day for debt servicing.
With the Mandaue City Government as co-owner of the Cebu International Convention Center (CICC), what are your suggestions for making the facility a viable enterprise?
The CICC’s location in Mandaue City already makes it viable. Mandaue has become the new center of the metropolis, with access to airports, seaports, hotels, resorts, dining and entertainment just minutes away.
With an urban Renewal Program as part of my platform of government, these new growth areas like the south reclamation area of Mandaue City will be developed to complement the convention center facility.
All future development in the area will be complementing the CICC, with the focus on making Mandaue a convention city. Existing businesses will be transformed to cater to convention and tourism-oriented development.
Ongoing right now is the Cebu Boardwalk that will have a marina and duty-free shops. We will work to make Mandaue City the next convention center in Asia.
What are your specific programs to address corruption? How will you ensure transparency?
My program to address corruption will be two-pronged. I would like to ensure that there will be full transparency during my incumbency.
In my first 100 days in office, I will encourage the community to get involved in governance by pushing them to form a watchdog against corruption.
I will empower NGOs, church groups and the professional sector so that they will be encouraged to participate in governance.
While I was in the States, I saw how their democracy worked because the community is involved, the public is empowered.
This is what I intend to do in Mandaue City.
If elected, will you accept the lampposts along the Asean ceremonial route if these are turned over to the City Government?
I would prefer that these remain under the Department of Public Works and Highways so the City can save its maintenance and operation costs and spend our resources on areas that need them the most.
How will you differentiate yourself from your father and grandfather?
My grandfather had the “masa” touch, while my father is management-oriented. I believe I have harnessed both of these qualities. Every leader, related or not, has different priorities and the same goes for me.
What is your reaction to questions that you don’t deserve to be mayor because of your age, lack of experience and the questions raised about your father’s track record?
My father’s track record speaks of making Mandaue City the fastest growing economy in the region. A Regional Development Council 2005 study showed Mandaue City has a growth rate of 34.60 percent compared to Cebu City with only 18.26 percent and Lapu-Lapu City with three percent. Business confidence as shown by gross receipts’ annual average growth rate at 14 percent is twice as fast as the national average, from P44 billion in 2001 to P72 billion in 2005.
The City’s annual income tripled over nine years, the number of businesses doubled over nine years from 5,000 to 10,000 small, medium and large enterprises.
That is why I am presenting myself because the city needs an economic manager to sustain the momentum of the city’s growth.
My platform of government will be based on investment promotions. I believe that if we attract more investments in Mandaue City—and this time investments on ICT and the financial sector—we will be able to generate the much-needed jobs. We will also be able to generate revenues for social and basic services.
If given a chance, the budget of the City in my administration will no longer be biased toward infrastructure, but on human resource development.
As Mandaue City is booming, I want the people of Mandaue to experience the economic benefits by preparing them for the influx of jobs from the ICT and financial sector.
I was a working student in the US.
My training there made me what I am now, an award–winning businessman. I learned the value of hard work. When I became managing director of Jollibee Bogo and Carcar, I garnered several management awards. I was named managing director of the year twice in a row in 2006 and 2007. Jollibee is the number one company in the Philippines today.
My management skill is my biggest asset, as Mandaue City evolves from an industrialized city into an emerging convention city in Asia.
full story
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Re: Merged: All About Mandaue Politics
Originally Posted by Zirv
? 
sobra ka below the belt naman neh imoha bro...
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