ATTACKED anew by its political rival as a “no performance” administration, Vice Mayor Belen Fernandez turned the table on the previous Lim administration for overspending and dissipating the city’s once vast resources.

In taking the cudgels for the administration of Mayor Alipio Fernandez, the vice mayor said the Fernandez administration managed to perform well and beyond expectations despite the financial burden created by the Lim administration’s two terms.

The vice mayor pointed out that city hall today, in contrast, is able to pay wages of emergency workers as well as pay for electricity bills promptly.

She said that the city hall under then Mayor Benjamin Lim, was constantly criticized for its long delays in payments of its accounts.

She pointed out further that the Fernandez administration inherited huge loan payables and was left with only P150 million in the city coffers to work with while Lim took over the city government with P550 million in the coffers, with no loans to pay.

Describing the administration’s management as efficient and financially prudent, she said borrowing funds from banks to shore up funds was never an option for them since that would only translate to additional taxes.

The city secured a P280 million from the Land Bank of the Philippines for the construction of the public market, P40 million for its air-conditioning, and another P40 million for dredging machines.

“But look what they did,” she said, adding that what they accomplished was “not commensurate to what they spent”.

The city government today pays P100 million in interests yearly which the vice mayor said would have been spent by the Fernandez administration for meaningful social and developmental projects in the city. –LM

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