THE BIG LEAP
Dreaming big is easy for Councilor Roderick Cabral who hopes that someday Nasugbu, Batangas (and even the Philippines) will be like where he lived before Europe.
BY JOYCE REYES-AGUILA
PHOTOGRAPHY BY MANUEL GENEROSO
His third term as councilor of the Municipality of Nasugbu, Batangas is coming to an end this year, but Councilor Roderick Sapico Cabral has signified his intention to serve his constituents further. The public servant filed his candidacy as mayor of the first-class municipality in the 2022 elections.
Cabral’s campaign is pillared on the hashtag #BagongNasugbu (New Nasugbu) that seeks to provide “Makabago at Napapanahong Pamumuno (Modern and Relevant Leadership),” according to his Facebook page. His running mate is fellow councilor Ayen Ramos Chuidian. Their party is promising to focus on the following (stylized with a “C” as both candidates’ last names end in the letter): Caunlaran (progress), Calusugan (health), Calicasan (environment), and Cabuhayan (livelihood).
The Nasugbu-born Cabral is the fourth of the eight children of Corazon “Azon” Salamatin Sapico and the late Remiglo “Emmie” Cabingan Cabral Sr. “Mahirap ang pinagdaanan namin (What we went through was difficult),” he recalls. “Maagang nawala ang aking ama (My father passed away early on). I was 12 years old at that time and our youngest was only six months old.
“As a housewife, my mother…hindi talaga madali pinagdaanan niya at namin. Kasi buhayin mo yung walong anak [nang] solo –
walang pang 4Ps, wala pang mga solo parent benefits. Talagang sinikap niya na buhayin kami. Nagluto [siya] ng pangmerienda, lutong ulam. Kasama pa nga kami maglako ng merienda (What she and we went through was really not easy. She supported eight.....
