ADVOCATING CREDIBILITY AND HONEST IN LOCAL POLITICS
Truthful and no-nonsense leadership—Mayor Vicky Lim’s brand of leadership has elevated Gasan, Marinduque.
BY ROSY MINA
PHOTOGRAPHY BY RENJIE TOLENTINO
If there is one thing that Gasan, Marinduque Mayor Victoria “Vicky” Lao-Lim is known for after almost 18 years of public service, it is her brand of truthful and no-nonsense leadership despite all odds.
"Well, I let other people say what they want to. My leadership style is so simple; I’m so honest and I’m a disciplinarian. I’m so frank. I call out people during meetings because I want them to be disciplined. I want to help my town have all well-disciplined constituents,” Lim tells LEAGUE Magazine.
The municipal mayor first assumed office in 1995. She was elected again in 2001, and then served for three consecutive terms from 2007 to 2016. During the gaps between her mayoral terms, she lost in reelection bids while in 2016, she failed to clinch the gubernatorial post.
Lim made a comeback as mayor in 2019, and looking back at her political career, she proudly declares her aversion to corruption. “Ako, hindi ako tumatanggap ni isang porsyento sa mga project kahit na daan-daang milyones ang dumadating na project sa town ko. Hindi ako nangongomisyon sa mga kontratista (I never accepted even just 1 percent commission even if hundreds of millions worth of projects enter my town. I don’t get commissions from contractors).”
She continues, “Mga SOP (‘standard operating procedure’, alleged automatic commissions given by contractors to local officials in areas where they have projects), wala ‘yun. Sinasabi ko na lang na hindi ko kailangan ng SOP (SOPs are a no-no. I say that I don’t need SOPs), not because I have the money but because I want you to build good quality projects. ‘Yun ang gusto ko. At saka bawal ka .......
