Thursday, June 28, 2007 Council divided on Gusa terminal case By Danilo V. Adorador III
This amid threats of suit filed by trader
CAGAYAN de Oro City officials appeared divided on the proposal to create a second eastbound jeepney terminal, amid the threat of a businessman to sue the City Government over the plan.
The mix-up came after Mayor Vicente Emano confirmed Wednesday that the soon-to-be refurbished Agora public market and passenger terminal would include parking bays for public utility jeepneys (PUJ).
This contradicted the draft contract of the Build Operate and Transfer (BOT) for Agora's facelift approved by the City Council Monday, with the provision creating another jeepney terminal stricken off and the proposed 30-year BOT term reduced to 28 years.
Emano said an additional terminal in Agora will free up the "congested" Gusa Eastbound terminal--directly challenging pro-administration Councilor Reynaldo Advincula's view that putting a jeepney station in Agora would clog the whole area.
Advincula heads the taskforce in-charge of the market's redevelopment--reportedly scheduled this year.
Though the draft BOT contract is still subject for final revision, the seeming gap between Emano and the pro-administration councilors on the issue is putting the P34 million properties in limbo.
If the City Government reduces the vehicular load in the Gusa station, it could lose thousands of pesos in toll fees everyday, said businessman James Giam, the donor of the property who also maintains commercial buildings around the area.
Built three years ago, Giam said the city have yet to recover half of the its investments in constructing the terminal--making the plan to duplicate it "seem illogical."
Giam said Emano was "uninformed" when the mayor said the Gusa terminal was decongested, faulting traffic enforcers for allowing jeepneys to park in malls and bypass the terminal.
"The un-enforced traffic rules make the terminal seem crowded, when in truth it's not," he said.
To prove this, the businessman urged Emano to "look into the declining income of the Gusa terminal, which shows that vehicular load is now fewer because the traffic enforcers are not enforcing the law."
Giam said he might go to court if the construction of a jeepney terminal in Agora pushes through, saying he stands to lose millions in infrastructure investments.
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