(Imelda’s birthday)
Am feeling a little below the weather. Looks like the allergy from the injection has reoccurred. I am showing skin rashes and general malaise after the stomach upset last night.
Have taken Forestal anti histamine medicine and local application of Polaramine cream on the rashes.
Slept last night at 2:00 AM and woke up to 6:40 AM and later at 8:00 AM for the 9:00 o’clock [sic] mass by Mons. Salvador Bishop of Palo at the front steps of the beach house in Ulot
Then we opened the cementing of the Tolosa-Palo road of 15 kilometers starting at Telegraphs. This is a part of the Pan Philippine Highway.
Then to Tacloban for the signing of the P28 million to the Leyte Electric Cooperative now NEA [National Electrification Administration] under the new law Rep. Act 6038.
Official Gazette for July 2, 1971: President Marcos, together with the First Lady, Imelda R. Marcos, attended the signing of the loan agreement between the National Electrification Administration (NEA) and the Leyte Electric Cooperative, Inc., held at the Leyte provincial capitol at noon. Mrs. Marcos signed as one of the witnesses to the agreement.
In brief remarks, the President said the active involvement of electric cooperatives in the government’s rural electrification program assures, in more ways than one, the success of that program itself. The system of cooperatives will prove to be the key to that success, the President said. He said that rural electrification is one of the top priority projects of the government in order to expand the country’s areas of productivity and thus provide greater employment opportunities for the people. The Leyte Electric Cooperatives, Inc. has programmed initial service to nine municipalities, namely: Dagami, Dulag, Julita, La Paz, Mallorca Pastrana, Santa Fe, Tabon-Tabon and Tolosa, with an aggregate population of approximately 144,000. The cooperative’s generating plant consists of three units of 2,500 kilowatt each, with a distribution system consisting of 258 kilometers of primary lines and 332 kilometers of secondary lines.
The loan agreement was signed for the NEA by Chairman Geronimo Velasco and for the LEC by Dr. Nicanor Tancingco, president. Among those present at the signing ceremony were Leyte provincial, municipal and barrio officials, Secretary of Labor Blas F. Ople, Highways Commissioner Baltazar Aquino, U.S. Ambassador Henry Byroade, and Ambassador and Mrs. John N. O. Curle of Great Britain.
Mrs. Marcos participation in the signing ceremony was one of the highlights of her birthday celebration. She has been the recipient of advance birthday greetings since her arrival in Tacloban, and was visibly touched by the warm greetings of provincemates who started serenading her since the eve of her birthday. Some of the well-wishers came individually while the greater majority composed mostly of plain folk from the different towns of the province came in groups.
The President helped the First Lady in receiving well-wishers, even while holding brief impromptu conferences with officials of the executive department who had called at the resthouse to felicitate Mrs. Marcos. Among the officials were Defense Secretary Juan Ponce Enrile and Assistant Executive Secretary Ponciano Mathay. The President also acted on some urgent official papers brought to him by Presidential Executive Assistant Jacobo C. Clave and Presidential Assistant Guillermo C. de Vega.
Ambassador [Henry] Byroade, Dr. Tom Nublack head of the USAID [United States Agency for International Development] in the Philippine, Ambassador and Mrs. [John] Curle of the UK, Jim Rafferty, Sen. [Ambrosio] Padilla, [Rene] Espina and [Mamintal] Tamano, Cong. [Ramon] Durano, [Emerito] Calderon, [Celestino] Sybico [Jr.], [Eduardo] Gullas, [Zamboanga del Sur] Cerilles, [Mohammad] Ali Dimaporo, Lening [Marcelino] Veloso, Nanding [Fernando] Veloso, Artem Mate, Gov. Romo, Gov. & Cong. [Nicanor] Yñiguez etc. were present.
This is the model for cooperatives throughout the country. I have ordered that five more be inaugurated this month.
Signing for the cooperative was Dr. [Nicanor] Tancingco and for the NEA [Chairman Geronimo Velasco.
Generation shall come from three generators of 2,500 KVA each and there will be 590 kilometers of wires. It will light the houses of 144,000 people in ten towns. The generators will come from Japanese reparations.
Snack at the Nipa House and lunch at Ulot after a conference with various groups including the generals.
Slept at 3:00-6:00 PM. Woke up feeling feverish. Blood pressure was 118 over 82. No temperature. Still feeling heavy and lazy. More skin rashes.
Then more conferences. There are still a lot of people. Set aside a P100,000 trust fund for scholarships for St. Paul University.
The tropical depression has upgraded into a tropical storm and will be over Leyte by 3:00 AM tomorrow.
Hope it does not rain tomorrow and we can go back to Manila by boat.