The challenges of political management

I’ve been away from the blogosphere because my days are now shorter. Since May 4th, aside from being the Secretary for the Provincial Government, I am the Intervening Public Officer for the Cebil Redondo Commune.
That day I arranged a public meeting at the front of the Commune building (photo) in order to listen to the people as well as tell them about the Governor’s projects. About 500 people came and anyone who wanted to be heard, was. For a minute I felt like I was back at my high school assemblies, which is where I started to become politically active; I started high school in 1984, only months after democracy returned to our country. Just like those meetings at the Commune, I am going around the neighborhoods listening to the people’s problems.
At the beginning, what I found to be the most serious was the social question. In a population of close to 30,000 (where about 40% lives under the poverty line), you shouldn’t have only 16 dignified pension plans. With the help of the Social Welfare Secretary, we trained a technical team that is studying the situation and helping the people with different national and provincial programs, from training courses, start-up programs, and financial assistance for those families that are in critical situations. We are also studying the situation in order to apply the Housing Improvement Program (Promevi, in Spanish) for 300 very precarious homes in the area. We also have started another coop program involving 30 more homes. Regarding public works, we are about to light up the main roads as well as the most important stretch of the 315 highway; we are going to pave 20 blocks and recreate public spaces with plants and playground equipment. The squares will have square maintenance people that, in the days-to-come, will be trained as gardeners, and they will also manage the commune’s nursery.
We have already improved the medical services: they are now working 24 hours a day, and in not too long they will also have an ambulance available. The first police station will also be set up in the area.
There is a lot of work to be done by the end of October, which is when I will have to turn things over to the new Commune Delegate Elect.