Monday, December 04, 2006 Council gets no holiday during summit By Linette C. Ramos Sun.Star Staff Reporter
THEY may not be allowed to enter Asean summit venues next week, but Cebu City’s councilors will not be left out in the hustle and bustle of the international event.
Like high-class personal assistants, they were tasked to see to it that all the foreign delegates’ needs are taken care of, from a lost contact lens to requests for a certain dish or delicacy.
The councilors will act as “troubleshooters” for both the delegates and members of foreign media organizations.
“Mayor Tom wants us to act as troubleshooters. Og naay taga CNN ganahan mukaon ug mangga, atong palitan og mangga (If somebody, say from CNN, wants mangoes, we’ll buy him mangoes),” Councilor Augustus Pe Jr. told Sun.Star Cebu.
Nagiel Banacia, the City’s protocol officer and Asean summit task force head, said the councilors’ role is crucial in the City Government’s hosting of the delegates.
They will also be part of the welcoming party at the airport and at the hotels where the delegates will be staying.
Bañacia said that while the City legislators are not allowed inside the Cebu International Convention Center (CICC) and the Shangri-la Mactan Island Resort and Spa, they have special assignments as city officials.
“They will be on standby for emergency cases. Each councilor should be ready to assist a specific delegation because even if a protocol officer is assigned to all delegations, the liaison officers will also not be from Cebu and will not know their way around,” Banacia explained.
“For instance, a delegate loses his contact lens or needs to see a doctor, the councilor will be there to be sure they get what they need. So in that sense, the councilors’ role will be very crucial,” he said.
He added that as City Government officials, the councilors also have the influence to request the opening of some establishments and offices that are closed during the summit.
And apart from their delegated duties, Pe and Councilor Sylvan Jakosalem will also attend to police and security concerns for the event’s duration.
Starting Dec. 10, the task force will set up an operations center at the City Hall Annex’s eighth floor, to make it easier to relay requests and concerns of the delegates and the foreign media. (LCR)
