First in new city administration agenda

THE Dagupan City Engineer’s Office has finally put its foot down.

City Engineer Virginia Rosario signed on Friday the formal notice stopping the construction of the tourism-commercial complex at the former Magsaysay Park, which is being undertaken by the MetroState Realty Corporation without a building permit.

Rosario told the PUNCH that the notice, addressed to Romualdo Siapno, an official of MetroState who signed the application for a building permit, was served in the afternoon of July 6 upon getting the green light from Mayor Alipio Fernandez Jr.

MetroState’s application for a building permit was denied by Rosario over the weeks for failing to submit the required documents.

The decision to stop the controversial construction project came after Fernandez had a closed-door meeting with his son, City Administrator Alvin Fernandez, former vice mayor of Dagupan, and City Legal Officer George Mejia.

Mejia said he and City Administrator Fernandez met with the mayor to evaluate the action that will be taken against MetroState which was noted to have accelerated the construction activities over the past week.

Mejia offhand said that after studying the matter thoroughly, the project of MetroState can even be cited for being a nuisance for constructing without a building permit.

The notice ordered MetroState to stop the construction work until it can comply with the requirements sought earlier by Rosario.

The requirements include a copy of the resolution of the city council that authorized then Mayor Benjamin Lim to enter into contract with MetroState.

To date, the councilors who initially voted for the project have refused to affix their signatures on the resolution without the signature of Councilor Teofilo Guadiz III who prepared the committee report giving authority to Lim to enter into contract with MetroState.

After hedging for weeks, Guadiz finally signed and hand-carried the committee report to Rosario’s office but did not indicate when he signed it.

Rosario, however, said the signed committee report alone is not deemed valid without a copy of the resolution authorizing then Mayor Lim to enter into a contract with MetroState.

A new set of councilors now sits in the Sangguniang Panlungsod following the May 14 mid-term elections.

Councilor Farah Decano said that committee report was useless because it did not pass the plenary in the Sangguniang Panlungsod.

Councilor Decano as well as Councilors Jose Netu Tamayo and Michael Fernandez are the only re-elected councilors who registered negative votes when the resolution was put into a vote.

Tamayo told the PUNCH that he supports to move to have the project re-bidded as espoused by then Vice Mayor Alvin Fernandez.

Guadiz has since been appointed as assistant secretary of the Department of Transportation   and Communication.—LM.

Share your Comments or Reactions

comments

Powered by Facebook Comments