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Tuesday, October 07, 2003
Megadome report withdrawn
By Jeanette P. Malinao
THE Cebu Provincial Board (PB) committee on laws sees no legal impediment to the proposed P18.75-million contract with architect Alexus Medalla as megadome consultant.
But the absence of three pro-megadome officials yesterday prodded the project proponents to withdraw the committee report.
“This is a contentious measure and timing is the primary consideration,” Vice Gov. John Gregory Osmeña said when pressed for an explanation for the withdrawal.
“Until we have lined up enough support for it, it would not be wise to bring it up,” he said.
The vice governor is chairman of the provincial megadome committee. He initially offered explanations like “There’s still little work that needs to be done” and “We’re not quite ready to bring it on the floor.”
Osmeña earlier expressed apprehension that PB Member Ramon Martin Calderon, a relative of Rep. Ace Durano, would join Members Josefina Patricia Asirit and Rosemarie Durano in being absent from the sessions.
True enough, Calderon was not around yesterday but Osmeña defended the Sangguniang Kabataan Provincial Federation president, saying Calderon has scheduled final exams.
Durano and Asirit were both on sick leave. Their absence from last week’s special session was taken as a “signal” that the much-opposed megadome is losing needed votes in the PB.
(October 7, 2003 issue)
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The contract needs eight votes to be approved and without Calderon, Asirit and Durano, the project would have surely been rejected yesterday.
The current stance of provincial legislators allied with Rep. Durano has been speculated to be related to his position on Gov. Pablo Garcia’s Anti-Drug Abuse and Trafficking Task Force.
Ace had instructed the district leaders not to attend the meeting that Garcia called for the task force, and later cancelled the scheduled release of honorarium for officials within his district.
Asirit refused to comment on the issue when Sun.Star called. She said both she and PB Member Durano are “not in the position” to comment on the matter.
The vice governor, in an earlier interview, noted that apparently Congressman Durano (Cebu, 5th district) wants something settled and until it is done, “all previous bets are off.”
“We’re having a rough path now, but I’d like to see the megadome’s completion,” Osmeña said yesterday.
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