July l6, 2012

HON. EVELIO R. LEONARDIA

Mayor
City of Bacolod

Dear Mayor Leonardia:

I should have written this earlier but every time “retirement” comes to mind, I get the jitters in
Anticipation of that new stage of life where “one sits on a rocking chair to wait for the sun to set” or
maybe “ when one puts on a new tire and go full speed ahead to a new direction.” I prefer the latter, of
course.

Time is now catching up on me and by October 27 I will be 65 years old. Whether I like it or not, Civil
Service will boot me out of office and by then I am already ready for that. I look at my retirement now
as my professional life coming to full circle - from the academe to tourism in l975 then back to the
academe in l987 then back to tourism in l996 -THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR THIS- and now back again
to the academe where I started.

Nearing the exit gate, I cannot speak enough nor contain in this letter my lifetime gratitude for
giving me the privilege to be the first city tourism officer of Bacolod and the first to receive the Most
Outstanding City Tourism Officer of the Philippines award from the Association of Tourism Officers of
the Philippines in 2006. I was also the first to receive in Negros Occidental The Most Outstanding City
Tourism Officer in Region 6 award in 2006, all because of your unstinted support as my mayor and
tourism pioneer in the city.

After my l5 years in the city, I leave with the thought that I have contributed modestly to our
tourism industry. My greater happiness, though, is in the privilege of contributing to your vision
turned passion for Bacolod to have a public city college. Your brainchild became an ordinance, the
meetings and consultations you conducted and the technical support were all there. But the CHED
permit to operate a school, much more for the tertiary level , was an entirely academic matter and it
was where I came in gladly – doing the curriculum design.

The curriculum design required by CHED needed, first and foremost a feasibility study (You might
want a copy, I still have the original) descriptions of courses to be offered from first to fourth year;
syllabus for each subject, references and list of faculty with master’s degree. My academic experience
and my connections with teacher-friends proved useful. I loved doing it as I was also able to go as far as
Silay Institute, TUP in Talisay and all the colleges here in Bacolod to convince friends to sign intention to
teach and give me their transcript of records. Most of them were skeptical, though, yet I got their
signature which became part of the CHED requirements to operate a college. I know that now those
skeptic friends of mine have been proven wrong because of the great heights the college has achieved.
 Being with CHED at that time, the late Mrs. Teresita Respicio, one of our Task Force City College
members, was a great help. The college was finally granted permit to operate effective school year
1997-1998 and its opening was, indeed, providential. Had we not opened that year, the college would
have been born in 2004 when you came back from vacation. The mayor after you would have slept on
the ordinance implementation and he even wanted to abolish it. But thank God, a noble mission could
not just be crushed nor could it die a natural death. It would blossom and bear fruits as we could see
now. The Bacolod City College will forever enthrone you in the hearts of the Bacolenos.

Time for goodbye’s. Time to say THANK YOU VERY MUCH. Time also to say SORRY for the many
sins of omission along the way as there had been a lot of times that I was not assertive or times when
the demands of the job are beyond government rigmarole. If doing were only as easy as to know what
would have been good to do, as an author said “chapels had been churches and poor men’s cottages
princes’ palaces. Maybe, I should not have committed those sins of omissions .

Again, THANK YOU VERY MUCH. I know GOD is always with you and family all the way to whatever
and wherever you want to be in service of the people of Bacolod. You will always be in my prayers In
my own little way, please always count my support.

GOD BLESS AND MORE POWER!

Sincerely,

Gene K.

Five years ago at 60 I thought of retiring, but GSIS told me I should complete my fifteen years of
government service in the city to entitle me to a pension. My DOT years were invalidated since I was
paid for it already, according to GSIS. Yes, I got a check –Pll,000.00 – for return of premiums. Five years
ago at 60 I thought of retiring, but GSIS told me I should complete my fifteen years of government
service in the city to entitle me to a pension. My DOT years were invalidated since I was paid for it
already, according to GSIS. Yes, I got a check –Pll,000.00 – for return of premiums.