He’s proactive

Even before the lockdown was announced or a confirmed case was found in Pasig, the 30-year-old mayor was preparing precautionary measures against COVID-19. He wasn’t just reacting to developments, but was doing as much as he could to make sure that his government could be as ready as possible to fight.

He was a clear and reassuring voice when we needed one

When the lockdown was announced, most of the country was left with so many questions about what it really meant. The morning after the announcement, Vico went on Facebook Live to calmly explain the community quarantine’s measures to the general public, not just Pasigueños. For many (including this writer), his FB Live was a much-needed explainer that calmed down nerves and helped us breathe a little easier.

Calmly encouraging his constituents instead of stirring up panic seems to be the standard for Vico, who was quick to reassure the public when the confirmed COVID-19 cases started to rise in number.

He steps up to the challenge

When Malacañang announced the Luzon-wide community quarantine, one question that was on almost everyone’s minds was how people would feed themselves without work, especially if they live from paycheck to paycheck. The national government then said that the burden of feeding their constituents fell on the LGUs.

Vico got to work quickly, starting a mobile clinic and allocating P100M on food packs for the 30 barangays in Pasig. As always, he was also very transparent about their decision-making on social media so his constituents knew where their tax pesos were going.

He’s not afraid to go against the grain

Recently, Vico has stepped on many authorities’ toes for appealing to the national government to allow Pasig’s tricycle drivers to operate. Why? Because according to his office’s risk assessment, not doing so would endanger more lives as patients and health workers would have a difficult time traveling to and from hospitals. And he’s so concerned about it that he’s losing sleep over it.

In an interview with ABS-CBN, he said that all of Pasig’s vehicles are already being used to give free rides to health workers, but that they’re still lacking in transportation solutions. Many of Pasig’s streets are also narrow and only traversable by tricycles and motorcycles, making it doubly hard for his constituents to go where they need to go.

The national government has since rejected Vico’s request, saying that allowing tricycle drivers to operate would make social distancing difficult. Vico did say that he’s not actively trying to defy the national government, but is just looking out for his constituents. Even so, his actions have now placed him in the crosshairs of political propagandists and troll farms.

(Protect him at all costs.)

He doesn’t stop looking for solutions

Even after the national government rejected his request to allow tricycles to transport health workers, he didn’t lose heart and kept looking for solutions for Pasigueños. The Pasig government repurposed their bike share units so that essential government personnel and health workers could get to work.

This shows that Vico and his team aren’t afraid to think out of the box. Recently, he went viral for buying disinfectant drones — that’s right, DRONES. Amazing to see just how much tax money can achieve when it’s being put to use properly, eh?

He gives credit where credit is due…

Many have expressed dismay at some government officials for not showing gratitude to those at the frontlines — the health workers, the sanitation crews, the essential government offices — but Vico has time and time again expressed his appreciation for their dedication.

…And doesn’t grab credit for himself

Take a note of the language he uses on social media. You don’t see a lot of “I”s and “me”s. It’s usually an acknowledgment of a collective effort: “us” and “we”. These words may seem small and insignificant, but they make a huge difference in the message he’s communicating — that his office is only able to operate with the support of our taxes, and that he’s not working alone, but is merely leading a huge operation where every worker is playing a crucial role.

He lets his actions speak for themselves, not making his works about him, but about Pasig.

But here’s the thing: Vico shouldn’t be extraordinary

I have to say that halfway through this list I was starting to feel icky for singing praises of a politician. If we’ve paid any attention to our history classes, we should know about the dangers of putting politicians on a pedestal, something that certainly wasn’t my intention. As much as we love the guy, we don’t want to turn into Vico fanatics who’ll turn a blind eye to his failings and defend him to the death. This might be hard to believe, but he’s human and prone to mistakes, just like you and me.

But this has to be said: right now, Vico is a breath of fresh air. He shouldn’t be, because this should be the norm, but he is.

Now, we don’t want to say that he’s the only government official stepping up to the challenge. We acknowledge that he’s getting an inordinate amount of our attention because 1) he’s a Sotto; 2) he’s a millennial who knows how social media works; and 3) let’s not beat around the bush, he’s cute and single. However, let’s not ignore the efforts of other LGU leaders out there who are also hard at work.

All that being said, we hope Vico continues focusing on serving the people as his political career progresses. Also, Vico, matulog ka na please.

Are you happy with what your LGU is doing in response to this pandemic? Sound off in the comments below!