Malilong: Tommy not bothered

Friday, February 10, 2012

LAST week, I wrote about a Bando Osmeña-Pundok Kauswagan (BOPK) official who compared Mayor Mike Rama with former mayor Alvin Garcia and concluded that the former would be a tougher challenge to Tommy Osmeña in 2013 than Alvin was in 2001 because, unlike Alvin, Mike is more focused.

The item drew a quick reaction from the former mayor and incumbent south district congressman. In a text message, he pointed out that, whereas in 2001 he had the support of only 11 out of the 80 barangay captains in the city, “today believe me na lang when I claim that it (the number of village chiefs supporting him) is more than 11.” Remember, he said, that 66 barangay captains signed a petition to “pick anyone but Mike” as BOPK candidate for mayor in 2010.

Tommy also noted that while Alvin, who was mayor for two full terms, had several incumbent councilors like Rudy Cabrera, Jun Gabuya, Firmo Dayao and Ritz Malinao supporting him, Rama has so far been “able to bring to his side only one out of 18 councilors in spite of his leading the council as vice mayor for nine years.”

“Rama is more focused? He can’t even answer questions on his own budget. For example, he asked for a P24 million intelligence fund or peace and order will suffer. The total intelligence fund of the National Bureau of Investigation is P20 million. No question that Mike needs more intelligence, but is he more focused? I don’t know but I hope you understand why I’m not bothered.”
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A much earlier column on the creation of the Central Cebu River Basins Management Council (CCRBMC) and its possible conflict with the authority of the Protected Area Management Board (PAMB) of the Central Cebu Protected Landscape (CCPL) also elicited a reply from Regional Executive Director Maximo O. Dichoso of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources.

There is no such conflict, Dichoso assured. On the contrary, the two bodies complement each other. The CCPL, he said, is a creation of law whose mandate is to “exercise sole jurisdiction over anything related to biodiversity conservation, watershed protection and sustainable development within its area of coverage.”

The CCRBMC, on the other hand, is a public-private partnership whose “very intention and purpose” is the protection and rehabilitation of the Mananga, Lusaran-Combado, Cotcot and Coastal river basins in Cebu, according to Dichoso.

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Where were you, or what were you doing, when the earthquake struck Cebu last Monday, I asked in my column Tuesday.

“I was skyping with my nephew in Tisa, Labangon,” wrote Ma. Teresa “Bebot” Johnson, a Cebuana who now lives in Jesup, Georgia in the US. She didn’t feel the tremor, she said, but she witnessed its immediate effect.

“My nephew was getting frantic while his wife was on the verge of hysteria. It was an eerie sight as panic swept through both of them. I felt helpless and about all I could do was to tell them to remain calm.”

Bebot said she continued chatting with the couple for several more hours to assure herself that they’d be fine. “I didn’t get to bed until 3:30 a.m., which was 4:30 p.m., your time.”

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Another reader, Rafael Ouano, complains about the rude treatment that he got from an official of the Department of Health regional office last Friday. Paeng, who is a son of former Mandaue City Mayor Pedong Ouano, claimed that he courteously approached Evangeline Canoneo at her office to inquire about something that was part of her functions but the latter snapped at him, telling him to go look at the yellow pages.

That’s not the way to treat a taxpayer, Evangeline, ma’am.

(frank.otherside@yahoo.com)