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Friday, January 13, 2006
Another inquiry set on Basoc controversy
By Roberto L. Bacasong
THE City council grilled Thursday Basoc secretary general Eric Loretizo on its inquiry over his accounting report of the P9 million fund provided by the city as share in the city's hosting of the 23rd Southeast Asian Games.
The council, however, has not reached a resolution yet and scheduled another round of inquiry.
The members of the council, on the other hand, passed a resolution to inquire whether the city has the right to claim the generated funds of the Basoc when it manned the city's hosting of the biennial meet last year.
The city hosted five sports events.
The city council also unanimously approved a resolution expressing the gratitude to Altajeros, Altajeros and King accounting firm led by its chairman, Arturo Altarejos Jr., for answering all the "critical" inquiries of the city.
Meanwhile, Councilor Al Victor Espino, chairman of the committee on finance and appropriation, dared Loretizo to name the members of the City Council who were allegedly asking favors to Basoc.
"An accusation was hurled and a shadow of doubt was cast against members of the council. Loretizo made pronouncements to the media that there were four members of the council who were asking favors from him or Basoc, without being specific about it," said Espino.
He added that Loretizo should be man enough to come out in the open and name those persons he referred to as the council will not tolerate such people.
Loretizo, on the other hand, refused to react on the matter appealing to them to give him enough time.
Espino said the Basoc secretary general's earlier pronouncement casted doubts on the integrity of some members of the council.
He said that in all honesty under the memorandum of understanding, only P3 million was initially committed. Over and above that, Mayor Evelio Leonardia with the support of the council released an additional of P6 million to Basoc as the city's support to the agency for having chosen as host to the biennial meet.
The councilor said the council is tasked to conduct an inventory of how the public funds were spent.
"It should be properly realized. Basoc only presented a piece of paper done by a reputable accounting firm, but there are no supporting documents," said Espino.
The councilor said he want a more substantive documents to back up the report.
'No more 1 million?'
The councilor suggested that the council should not release the remaining P1 million which was part of the P10 million allotted to Basoc.
"The city has nothing to give anymore because Basoc has incurred a savings of P700,000 through ticket sales. This was declared by Loretizo in his first appearance last Dec. 8, 2005," Espino said.
If we get 30 percent of that by way of an Amusement Tax, then why should we give them the remaining fund? asked the councilor.
"We have never been a paragon of fake concerns as what Loretizo claimed. He should be man enough to face us and be true to his words," he said.
Loretizo, in a separate interview, said, "We are sometimes carried away by our emotions. Even mature people experienced that. It's very regrettable that because of miscommunications, the relationship was affected. I hope that we will be able to resolve this. We should not be onion-skinned."
Basoc funds
The city council also deliberated on who should really own the funds of Basoc.
Vice Mayor Renecito Novero, in an interview, said during their previous deliberations, it was discussed that the funds generated and were deposited in the name of Basoc should be considered funds of the City.
"If the funds are not for the city, then who owns it? Who will disburse and benefit from those funds? Basoc is only an ad hoc committee and is only for the SEA games," Novero said.
Loretizo, in related interview, said Basoc has two separate bank accounts -- one for the City Funds and the other is their Marketing Fund Deposit, all are deposited at RCBC.
He said that he will call a meeting together with the Basoc to clarify the matter.
If there are money left in those bank accounts, then who owns those funds? If the money belongs to the city, then that money can be used to pay the volunteers, the vice mayor said.
Basoc should not wait the funds from the Philippine Southeast Asian Games Organizing Committee (Philsoc) if it has the money to pay for its remaining obligation to the volunteers, he said.
(January 13, 2006 issue)
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