Friday, November 14, 2008 Mayor axes 2 Cepmo executives By Rimaliza Opiña
APPARENTLY dismayed by the way they handled the city's waste problems, two ranking officials of the City Environment and Parks Management Office (Cepmo) were discharged from their current positions by Baguio City Mayor Reinaldo Bautista Jr.
In Administrative Order (AO) 178, the mayor said the move is in preparation for the reorganization of the department.
Cepmo will be divided into the City Parks Management Office (CPMO) and the City Environment Management Office (Cemo).
Cordelia Lacsama, currently the Cepmo's officer in charge (OIC), was assigned to the CPMO while the appointment of Engineer Nazita Bañez as assistant department head was recalled. She was ordered to return to her previous assignment as head of the City Demolition Team.
The demolition team is under the City Buildings and Architecture Office (CBAO).
The CPMO will be in charge of overseeing the implementation of parks, forest and watershed management and administration of the city cemetery.
Cemo, on the other hand, is in charge of the implementation of programs on solid and liquid waste management, ambient air quality monitoring and water quality management, among others.
It was tasked these functions "to meet demands in complying with national laws particularly the Solid Waste Management Act, the Clean Air Act, the 10-year solid waste plan of Baguio and to adhere to the reputation of the city as a hall of fame awardee in the search for the cleanest and greenest city in the Philippines."
Before her designation as OIC of the Cepmo, Lacsamana was the assistant department head of the City Planning and Development Office. She took over Arch. Josephine Chan who was transferred to the Burnham Park Management Authority (BPMA).
"There is a need to reorganize or restructure the Cepmo in order to effectively address various concerns of the department," the mayor said, as he observed that parks and solid waste management, two of the biggest concerns of the city, "have grown out of proportion" and fell within the ambit of this department.
General Services Officer Romeo Concio meanwhile will temporarily head Cemo. The order will take effect November 15.
