Monday, November 12, 2007 Nalzaro: Where's Radaza's conscience? By Bobby Nalzaro Saksi
THE Lapu-Lapu City Government has adopted a new tactic to pressure businessman Efrain Pelaez Jr., owner of the Marina Mall, to give in to their demand to comply with City Hall’s building permit requirements. City Hall’s next move is to hold Marina Mall tenants hostage by not issuing them business permits for next year so that they will be forced to pressure Pelaez to get permit from the City.
This tactic was evident in last Saturday’s dialogue with the tenants and city officials headed by Mayor Arturo Radaza. Good that the mayor has finally come out from his ‘cave’ and talked to Pelaez’s tenants and allowed the media to cover the dialogue. Radaza has been evading the media since the issue cropped up several months ago.
During the dialogue, the mayor told the tenants he will meet with the City Hall department heads to find a ‘reconciliatory remedy’ without sacrificing the city’s interest. He acknowledged the sentiments and apprehensions of the tenants. Well, it was a good gesture on the part of the mayor to show his sympathy to the tenants who are just caught in the crossfire in this ongoing conflict.
But City Attorney Vincent Joseph Lim was very antagonistic in his statement as if he is more powerful than the mayor. “If you want a categorical answer (whether or not) you will be issued permit next year, I would say no, unless you comply with the law,” Lim told the representatives of the mall’s tenants. I thought that Atty. Lim is soft spoken. But it seems he is arrogant.
Why run after those tenants when they have complied with the business permit requirements? These tenants have nothing to do with the failure of Pelaez to comply with building permits. They are tenants in good faith. City Hall officials want the tenants to pressure Pelaez to get permits from City Hall so they will not be placed in a compromising situation. They want Pelaez’s tenants to ‘revolt’ against him.
As I said in my Saturday column, I believed that Lim and lawyer Richard Sison are the ones giving ill advises to Radaza. They are complicating a very simple matter by defying a court order. This is a very simple issue. All they have to do, in the meantime, is just follow the court order pending resolution of the case. Period.
But the fate of the tenanst will defend on the Radaza’s decision. If he wants to force the issue by closing the mall despite the injunction, then let him do it. But before he will do it, let him think first the possible repercussions of his action. But if the mayor has a conscience and love for his constituents, then he has to abide with the court order and wait until the resolution of the case. Why in a hurry? Is the city losing millions of pesos with the illegal (?) operation of the Marina Mall?
City Treasurer Elenita Catagcatag said the dispute over jurisdiction is just one of the ‘many problems’ between the City Government and the Philippine Export Zone Authority (Peza). There are so many non-export firms that are operating inside the export zone like canteens that did not comply with the city’s building and business permits. Mactan Export Zone (Mepz) even refused city inspectors to inspect these establishments because Peza officials claimed that locators inside the zone are exempted from the city’s tax power.
Oh, you see? If the mayor and his ‘rah-rah’ boys and brillant lawyers are claiming that they are just implementing the law when they closed Marina Mall last month, then implement that law to the fullest whoever get hurts. Why single out Pelaez? Again, just asking.
