There is a time to be nice and dandy as there is time to be frank and brutal.

Frankly, we think the political leadership in Panglao sucks. It starts with the leadership of the government ship there: Mayor Doloreich Dumaluan. But it does not end there - it goes all the way to the legislative branch of that famous island.

It is a sad commentary that both the mayor and his political rivals in government have turned the fabled island-resort into a political football field - each team throwing strategic roadblocks to the other. It is an ugly war - not only because the linens they washed in public are dirty - but because their personal prejudices prevail over the larger interest of the islanders in particular and the tourism industry in general.

It is back to the days of the cave men - reason flies out of the window (of the cave, in this instance) and pride and arrogance prevail. What a pity for such a crown jewel of the nation's most preferred destination to be tattered by people who cannot rise above their class interests.

No less than the Governor had tried to pacify the warring tribes - for the betterment of the larger public. The media, churchmen and business who know what hurts revenues have made a similar spin to the, pardon us, the cave men. To no avail. The victim here has been our tourism industry.

Mayor Dumaluan, sir, please answer the public, why until now you can not muster unity in the local governance to decide on letting the Bohol Water Utilities, Inc. (BWUI) bring in potable drinking water to the resorts and households in your town.

A major issue is the absence of potable drinking water. Public officials and their private sector collaborators are falling all over one another to get a piece of the pie of the P3.2-Billion Panglao International Airport. Yet there is no potable water coming from the faucets of Panglao resorts and visitors have to make do with mineral and purified water for drinking purposes. There is something wrong with Panglao's sense of priorities considering that neighboring town Dauis has water in abundance flowing from the pipes provided by the BUWI.

Dauis is just a spit away from Panglao, but last Friday, our imaginative mayor called a meeting of Panglao resort owners to propose an expensive desalination project. What is your real agenda, Mr. Mayor?

Foreign resort operators and true-blue Boholanos alike were agitated when there was a motion to export water from the abundance of Bohol's rivers and falls into metropolitan Cebu simply because we are awashed with too much H2O. Imagine that - and not a drop goes to the Panglao Paradise!

What kind of nonsense is going on here? What kind of private interests are our so-called public servants serving then? What became of their oath to serve the public well because a public office is a public trust? Certainly, even, the Bible said one cannot serve two masters - eventually you will love the one and hate the other. There are no two ways about that.

We also ask Mayor Dumaluan why can you not stop the illegal whale watching operators who put the legitimate ones into a state of permanent business injury? Tell us sir, if you are a leader of the island town, why can't you find a permanent solution to those dangerous eyesore bancas fronting the very beachfronts we proudly pit against the white sand of Boracay?

Sir, and sirs (in the legislative department) why are your collective political wills constructed of so weak a fabric that the 20-meter salvage zone ruling is not completely enforced? You do not seem, to understand, sirs, that the ruling was meant to preserve the health and well-being of tourists and operators alike - do not push Mother Nature closer to the wall than where she is today.

When she strikes back - we assure you, no resort in Panglao will be left standing - we mean those worthy of meeting international standards of safety and aesthetics. Do you want to push your luck further?

Ladies and gentlemen of the Panglao municipal government, we address you. You were elected by your 22,000 townmates or the equivalent voters to protect and preserve the welfare of your constituents.

Get real, guys and girls. The water crisis is a real, gut problem - and is a test case of Panglao government's managerial acumen and statesman-like foresight. Failure to address that is a declaration of failure of governance.

Good thing, we may have an election, after all, by 2007.

Let this foolhardy type of governance and the debts owed to the people in terms of lack of service be exacted its due payment at the polls. Barring that, there are recall mechanisms in our democracy that allow the people to take matters into their own hands.

In the summer capital and tourism-oriented Baguio City, the Office of the President through Executive secretary Eduardo Ermita issued an 11-page decision signed by the President GMA (dated June 26, 2006) suspending the city mayor Braulio Yaranon for one year for grave misconduct, abuse of authority and oppression.

Under Section 66 (Paragraph B) of the Local Government Code, all decisions of the president are final and executory.

These things need not come to that extent for Panglao.

But there is little time. And the patience of people is wearing thin. Not all can respond like the Biblical Job for aggravations that are glaringly present in the otherwise beautiful island of Panglao.

Take heed, fellows.