Monday, March 19, 2007 Speak out: Pity the poor folks By Alfredo J. Sipalay Cebu City
LAST month, Gov. Gwen Garcia closed the short road connecting M. Cui St. to Fuente Osmeña rotunda. Barricades have been placed on both ends of the said road with signboards proclaiming: “ROAD CLOSED THIS LOT IS OWNED BY THE PROV’L. GOV’T. OF CEBU.”
Governor Garcia closed that road in a fit of pique and to show muscle to Cebu City Mayor Tomas Osmeña. Last month, the Cebu City Council derailed Capitol’s “Ciudad” mall-and-condominium project in Banilad, when it passed a resolution ordering a moratorium on new constructions along Banilad Road.
The newspapers reported that Governor Garcia would have wanted to barricade another Province-owned lot fronting Vicente Sotto Memorial Medical Center (VSMMC). However, she was allegedly prevailed upon to let it be because the indigent patients of VSMMC would suffer if she would close it.
And we are thankful that Governor Garcia didn’t barricade Fuente Osmeña—if only to show to Mayor Osmeña that the park with a fountain named after the mayor’s grandfather is owned by the Province.
Cebu City’s traffic authorities have made adjustments as a consequence of the closure of the above-mentioned road. Motorists can still travel to and from both ends of the closed road with minimal hassle.
It’s the poor folks that I pity—the ones who patronize Larsian barbecue food stall or go to Chong Hua Hospital, both of which are located at the other end of the closed road. I’ve seen them slip under the barricades in order to reach Larsian or Chong Hua.
If only all people were as fit as the governor, then there would be no problem in hurdling those barricades. Unfortunately, they are not. Just ask the governor’s favorite councilor. And I pity the old folks, those who can hardly walk, much less hurdle iron barricades.
The governor has made her point. I’m sure her brilliant consultant, Atty. Pablo John Garcia, could justify the closure of that road. But if she will open it up, she would not only be doing the right thing. She would be doing it, principally, for the poor folks’ sake.
