MIRROR, MIRROR ON THE WALL — The visibly irked Mayor Belen Fernandez did not mince words to rebuke Vice Mayor Brian Lim for accusing her that she wants the city hall transferred to another site badly because she is plotting to convert the lot occupied by the present city hall as a commercial site.

“That is impossible,” said Fernandez in a press conference she called before she left for the United States to accompany 10 Manlinkor Ya Kalangweran (MYK) students to Milpitas City, California. She did not let the accusation of Lim and also Councilor Redford Erfe Mejia go unanswered.

Fernandez told newsmen she is not like Brian’s father, former Mayor Benjamin, who during his term actually planned to sell not only the lot occupied by the city hall but also the entire plaza for his own advantage.

“Noong ako ay vice mayor, nalaman ko na may plano silang ipagbili ang plaza, may plano silang ibagbili ang city hall,” said Fernandez with Councilor Jose Netu Tamayo and City Administrator Farah Decano by her side.

She said. “Sinabi nila na iko-convert ko ang city hall lot into a commercial area. Masyadong imposible na gagawin po natin yan. Yan kasi ang ginagawa nila noon –buy and sell,” she added.

She cited the following:

1. MC Adore International Palace was bought by the Lim administration for P50 million from the Privatization Management Office (PMO) purposely to be made into a city hall, only to be sold by BSL for only P119 million when he returned to power in 2010 when the market value of the property was easily P400 M. What was the deal for that low price?
2. BSL made the city buy the 30-hectare lot in San Jacinto for P16 million which he obtained through his business partner for P7 million! The city eventually lost the property because unknown to the city, the area was covered by land reform. The money was never returned to the city.
3. Then when Lim was president of the Filipino-Chinese Chamber of Commerce, he sold a donated road leading to the Chinese cemetery to a bus company that deprived the Filipino-Chinese community passage way to their cemetery.
4. The dredging machine that BSL made the city buy for P49-M as brand new was not serviceable after few months. It had to be sold as junk. The brand new and bigger DPWH dredging machine being used in Dagupan only cost P37.5M.
5. The former Magsaysay Park was leased to his business partners that eventually built Metro Plaza. She asked: Who owns Metro Plaza today? Formerly, the area was occupied by Bugnay Commercial Development Corporation that was razed to the ground before its contract with the city expired.

Fernandez said Brian should remember all these before accusing her of many things, including graft and corruption only because her brother Kerwin donated a 2.4 hectare land as possible site of a government center when he and family were not willing to make a similar donation.

To further rebut Brian, Fernandez said there will be an ordinance that will declare the present city hall, plaza and Gabaldon building of the West Central School as heritage sites to ensure that future officials will protect and preserve these sites and would not do a BSL, selling off city properties.

On Lim’s and Erfe-Mejia’s call for a referendum, Councilor Tamayo said they do not have the say since under Section 11 of the Local Government Code, a two-third vote of members of the city council will be required on the matter. There are only two of them.

Councilor Joey Tamayo said that it was the minority (that included the two) in the SP who suggested the holding of consultations. When Erfe-Mejia and Lim saw that the proposed transfer of the city hall was being backed overwhelmingly, they changed gears and now want this time a referendum to delay and block the completed process.

“Alam ninyo si Lim, kung ano-ano ang sinasabi niya dahil palagi siyang wala sa Dagupan and does not know the real situation,” Fernandez said. She added that he did not even attend hearings on the Comprehensive Land Use Plan.

The mayor said the two officials have no respect for all the barangay captains, members of people’s organizations and others who were present in the series of consultations by insisting on a referendum.

Short of calling Lim paranoid, Fernandez wondered how the vice mayor came to compute a P3 billion loan that he said the city will apply for. He started with P1.5 billion then P2 billion.

The only thing she mentioned was the plan to set aside P100 million in the 2018 city budget to be used for backfilling the donated property, no loan was mentioned since there were no final plans for the design.

She called out Lim and Erfe-Mejia to look at themselves in the mirror before accusing anyone of corruption. People are asking how much did they gain from all the deals entered into by the Lim administration at the expense of the city. – Leonaro Micua

 

PAYATAS BY THE BAYWALK — Fifth District Board Member Chinky Perez-Tababa assailed the baywalk-turned-dumpsite along the Lingayen Beach.

In a privilege speech Monday, Tababa condemned the sorry state of the beachwalk and the shoreline after she found out its filthy condition on Aug. 18 during a jog with her friends from the Capitol area towards the baywalk heading towards Binnaley town.

She took photos of what she saw and flashed them onscreen during her privilege speech for everybody to see.

She said she felt heartbroken when she saw piles of garbage in the area.

Not only heartbroken but nauseating.

“It’s our obligation to maintain its beauty and grandeur,” Tababa said.

I agree with her. Our beach, our treasure, our responsibility.

Hindi na sana nya papansinin masyado ito until the incidents happened many times in her other visits. Tambak na basura sa gilid ng baywalk. May Payatas sa tabing dagat.

She said it should be everybody’s concern, from the stretch of seven barangays in Lingayen and Binmaley towns that span the baywalk area, to take care of God’s gifts and the man-made structures built using government funds.

Nathaniel Pulido, Environment and Natural Resources chief of Pangasinan provincial government, said the responsibility in maintaining the upkeep of the areas concerned, including the barangays that cover it, is embodied in Republic Act 9003 or the Solid Waste Management Act.

Tababa said, “We are not blaming anyone but this is a social responsibility.”

She cited the case of Urdaneta City, her home-city, where Mayor Amadeo Gregory Perez IV made the place the greenest and cleanest city by strictly implementing the anti-littering ordinance.

Urdaneta City is earning a lot from penalties collected from violators of the ordinance, she said.

“Only two words here. Political will,” Tababa said.

Two big words. Political will. Kaso parang mahirap atang hanapin yan ngayon, o kaya, kokonti na sa mga pulitiko natin ang may ganyan.

The problem is us. Tayo ang may kasalanan kasi marami sa atin ang di marunong magtapon sa tamang tapunan ng mga basura natin.

But, even with this kind of mentality, if leaders strictly enforce our laws, like what Urdaneta does, marami sana ang kikitain sa multa. Dagdag pang gastos din ito ng mga LGUs.

Bawat maling tapon, multa. Tignan natin kung sino ang susuko.

Kung nasa ibang bansa tayo, takot tayo magtapon ng basura. Pero pag nasa sariling bayan, kalat dito, kalat doon.

Tama si Geneva Cruz sa kanyang kanta:

Anak ng Pasig naman kayo

Tapon doon tapon dito

Di nyo alam ang tinatapon

Ay bukas ko at ng buong mundo.  – Eva Visperas

Share your Comments or Reactions

comments

Powered by Facebook Comments