Chapter 35 - Election of Wilson Guanzon, CPBC President in 1988-1991

                                             Chapter  35

             Election of Mr. Wilson D. Guanzon,  CPBC President in the 1988-1991

                                                                                                       

 Mr. Wilzon D. Guanzon was elected  President in 1988-1991.   Rev.  Rev. Delbe Dianala was  General Secretary  from 1989-1993.  Mr.  Thor Famillaran was the Vice President.

It was also during the Presidency of Mr.Guanzon in  December 19,1992, that my 4^th and youngest son was born. 

 Mr.  Guanzon, was elected president  in the most difficult time of Convention history after 1950’s. Some called these, the “Darkest Days” of CPBC history.

Mr. Wilson D. Guanzon  led the  Convention with very little financial resources. He inherited   an   almost bankrupt  Baptist Convention.  Before the election in May 1988, all the funds in the CPBC from projects that have big amounts left, including the North Negros Development Project were  released fast  by the previous administration. The new administration was almost  bancruft.  When Mrs. Feraz Legita assumed his posts, after her appointment as   Officer-in-Charged of Relief Ministries, the fund for her  program was only P19,000.

The widespread  corruption that hit Marcos rule from 1972-1986, after  his fall, have continuing with hard effects for years after his rule.  

After   their  elections,  Mr.  Wilson D. Guanzon and  Mr. Thor Famillaran, President and Vice President,  worked hard to leading the Convention with strong determination to rise from the very hard situations.  Support from the churches  have gone down to only,  7 per cent. The task to revover lost grounds  was left to Mr. Guanzon.  The admistration was struggling for lack of funds. The Relief Ministry  which was vacated by Mrs. Sampaguita  Juarez,  has no more  programs and no money for its services. 

The administration has to work with a minimal full time staff of 8 people.   The remaining project it holds, the Support an Orphan (SAO)  funded by  the Australian Baptist Relief was taken from CPBC  and given to Mrs.   Juarez,   as new    SAO Project administrator. 

By this time, CPBC’s   project’s   resources,  in  the Treasurer’s Office were all spent. No  funds were forthcoming   from  CPBC former partners related to WCC  --  Christian Aid, EZE, Diakonia, Bread for the World and  Stichting .  One reason,  I learned later,    CPBC leadership has not    reported and liquidated project expenditures.

When  I resigned as Director of the New Frontier Ministries years ago,    the funds of NFM in the Treasurers Office, was about  P2,700,000. These do not include funds from   SAO  (Support an Orphan)   and Kinderhomes, which  were also  with  the Treasurer’s office, but in separate accounts. 

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Atty.  Angel Lobaton, CPBC President,  in 1987,   went to the United States to attend a Conference  of the American Baptist Churches, USA. He was not able to attend the  international conference.   He  stayed in the US  quite long.  He returned to the Philippines    nearly a year after he left.  He also returned the travel  money provided him to attend the BIM Conference in the United States which he was not able to attend.

After his election in 1988,  Mr. Wilson.  Guanzon, President and Rev. Delbe Dianala, General Secretary, requested me to assist  Mrs. Feraz Legita in the  Relief Ministries. I was given a little honorarium.  I  accepted it.  Together, we worked and made  plans  to  strengthen the CPBC Relief Ministries and assist the CPBC’s  other programs. 

We opened  communications again,  with  closed relationship and partners. I tried with one partner before, but the response was negative. They said, they have not received report on the project and liquidations of  the funds released.

When relations between CPBC and BUS  were still closed.  Rev. Olof Lindstrom came with visitors from Sweden, including  Mr. Boo Forsberg, Diakonnia Director, Agneta Magnusson  and  others Diakonia friends.  They visited the CPBC office. They visited Aklan.   They also visited  and have sharing and dinner with Hesther and me  at home.  Rev. Lindstrom made sure that the relations were alright, so that when new leadership came in,   new relations could be started and partnership  opened. 

It was a hard four years, until relationship turned to normal with the elections  of Mr. Wilson D.  Guanzon, CPBC President.

The Baptist Union of Sweden    responded   positively.   Rev.   Olof Lindstrom came to the Philippines.  Together with Mrs. Feraz Legita and  Mr. Wilson Guanzon, we  visited and assisted churches that were newly  established by  Bacolod Cosmopolitan Church.  These  churches were assisted with projects that were needed to strengthen their ministry.

We visited Rev. Arsenio Llamas  at Murcia Evangelical  Church, Mr. Allan Sy in San Enrique Baptist Church and the Minister of  Maao Central Evangelical Church . Together,   we worked to help  stremgthen the small and newly organized  churches in Central Negros.

We helped mobilized the churches to stand with the  new leadership of the  Convention. Because we do not have the needed resources, we  mobilized local resources.   In consultations and seminars  in  Antique,  Mr. and Mrs. Dagohoy assisted.

He mobilized funds so we can have meetings with Pastors and leaders of Antique churches.  We met at Antique Christian Center, with  lunch provided by the Dagohoy family and Antique Christian Center,  including our supper and breakfast.  The CPBC has no funds yet for  consultations, seminars and trainings.

In Bacolod City, every time Mrs. Feraz Legita  and myself came, we stayed   in   the   home of Mr. and Mrs.Wilson Guanzon. Their children, all young and students in high school and college were there. Mr. and Mrs. Guanzon provided   us two rooms in their home – one room for Mrs. Legita and another room for me.

 Our foods, snacks and  some other  needs,  were provided by President and Mrs. Wilson Guanzon. These was  how we pushed and sustained the CPBC ministry during that hard time of its history.

The following year,  1991,  Diakonia  came back  and entered partnership again with  CPBC Development Ministries. It started with    Aklan-Capiz Baptist Integrated Program for Education & Development, Phase 1 from 1992-1995. It was  followed with Panay-Negros Expansion Program for Development for Education and Cooperative Building, Phase 11 from 1995-1996.

 It was followed with CPBC Development Ministries and  continued 2006, when Diakonia  Philippine ministry  that covers Panay and Manila  were  closed, to serve other areas of the world.