Governor Constancio Chatto Torralba

a visionary leader ahead of his time

by Ludwig Bon Quirog

Long before the Island of Panglao became the tourist haven that it is today – decades before the rise of the luxurious resorts that dot the eponymous fishing town’s white sandy coasts – a visionary leader took a good gander at it and, as if through a premonition, saw our humble province’s gateway to the world. This person was then governor Constancio “Nonoy” Chatto Torralba.

Somewhere within his governorship from 1988 to 1992, Gov. Torralba saw the need for a new and bigger airport for the province as during the time the airport in Tagbilaran City was but a converted airstrip with a tiny runway and apron that could only serve one aircraft at a time. To add to its list of limitations, nothing bigger than an Airbus 320 could ever be allowed to land on it, thereby keeping Bohol’s prospects for growth in the arena of aviation reception sorely limited. His eyes were set on Panglao Island as it was close enough to the province’s capital to cater to the city’s residents, distant enough to not disrupt the city’s daily on-goings, and located in a place with a great potential to become an end destination of its own.

Some three decades later, the dream of Gov. Nonoy finally came true. It was not without a fair amount of struggle and hurdles that this gargantuan aspiration was achieved. It took the work of four more governors for this new aviary to finally take hard form. After Gov. Torralba came Gov. David Tirol, Gov. Rene Relampagos, Gov. Erico Aumentado, and, finally, Gov. Edgar Chatto. Within these five administrations, each governor shared in turning the dream into a reality – from the conduct of feasibility studies, including on engineering perspectives as well as environmental impacts, the acquisition of land, coordination with government entities both on the national and local levels, particularly with the Department of Transportation (DoTr) and the Local Government Units of Panglao and Dauis, care for social impact and affected communities, as well as the gaining of commitments for aid from both the private sector and international cooperation agencies.

The new international airport was inaugurated on November 27, 2018. However, Gov. Torralba was given the pioneer’s privilege. On October 21, 2018, a month before the place opened its gates to the world, he was given a special tour of the still unsullied complex, from terminal to tower to tarmac, as though presenting to a grandsire his newest and most precious great grandchild. Seeing Gov. Nonoy set foot on Bohol’s newest aviation portal, one could only speculate on the amount of joy that must have rushed through his heart. What was once simply an idea – a notion, if you will – had now become a formidable edifice that would serve Bohol and its visitors for decades upon decades and scores upon scores to come.

Little known is that the event was a full circle moment for the office that Gov Nonoy once held as it was during the time of his nephew Edgar that his dream from many, many years ago had finally taken its Earthly form. 

Sadly, just over a year after the realization of his decades-long dream, Gov. Torralba passed away. On December 24, 2019, Christmas Eve to those of us who celebrate, Gov. Nonoy succumbed at the age of 91 to an illness he had long been battling. However, the man lived a full and happy life and, needless to say, even his biggest dreams were achieved during his lifetime.

Today, when we set foot at Bohol Panglao International Airport, whether as passengers or passing visitors, let us be reminded that this beautiful piece of infrastructure is art that has come together through dreams that have been kept alive over nearly half a lifetime. It is the product of the hard work and mind prowess of several experts in engineering, natural sciences, social sciences, and developmental and environmental research, among others. It all began with the idea of Gov. Nonoy Torralba, which is why on November 29, 2023, on the occasion of his 95th birth anniversary, around the 5th anniversary of the inauguration of the airport itself, together with the DoTr and the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH), we honor the late governor by naming the beautiful airport road after him. Henceforth, it shall be known as the Gov. Constancio Chatto Torralba road.

No amount of “thank yous” could rise parallel to the contributions of a genuine and sincere servant leader, especially if he has made personal sacrifices that took away from his own personal happiness in favor of the people’s. Certainly, there is no claim that to name a street after a person we wish to thank would ever suffice as tribute to his greatness. However, in doing so, his name is immortalized and his legacy is solidified. For many, many years to come, his name shall be uttered by all who come to visit Bohol by air. People looking at maps and navigating the island shall say his name as they turn towards the paved road and look unto the sky in anticipation of the limitless potential that the airport of Gov. Nonoy’s dreams serves to all who come through it.