Wednesday, December 12, 2007 Council wants Palace bargain on P50M fee
THE Cebu City Council last Wednesday asked the executive department to discuss with the National Government the possibility of doing away with the so-called P50- million “commitment fee” from City Hall.
The National Government is entitled to the fee for guaranteeing that just in case the City Government cannot pay its South Road Properties (SRP) loan, it will shoulder the payment.
The City Council considered the amount wasted because it could go a long way if used instead by the City for basic services.
“It should not be taken at the expense of the City Government but something that can be withdrawn once we pay the loan,” said City Councilor Rodrigo Abellanosa.
Meanwhile, Mayor Tomas Osmeña believes the court’s decision declaring the City Government’s claim over the SRP as legal will speed up the sale of lots within the facility.
Osmeña said yesterday he expected the court to dismiss former Tinago Barangay captain Joel Garganera’s case against the City.
While the case did not turn off investors negotiating with the City Government on the sale of some lots, it raised questions on the legality of the project, the mayor told reporters.
“It raised a lot of questions but we were able to answer all of them. Maybe it did cause some delays but it doesn’t matter. It’s a blessing because if there are questions raised in the future, we can just tell the investors to read the court’s opinion on the matter,” Osmeña said.
Proceed
Lawyers from a Manila-based law firm earlier met with the mayor to inquire about the legality of the reclamation project in behalf of their investor-client but after explaining the case, Osmeña said the lawyers advised their client to proceed with the transaction.
Garganera had asked the court to stop Osmeña, the City Council, the Register of Deeds and the marketing arm of the SRP, the Cebu Investments Promotion Center (CIPC), from marketing, selling, disposing of or leasing the SRP.
He said the sale of the 290-hectare facility is illegal since the SRP is classified as lands of the public domain, and therefore owned by the state.
But in his 13-page order, Regional Trial Court Judge Soliver Peras ruled that the City’s actions involving the SRP are legal. He also said that the SRP has ceased to become part of the public domain and is now owned by the City Government, which can sell or lease out the property.
Confidence
“The court decision is now part of permanent records that validate the City’s ownership of the SRP... and it will increase the level of confidence on the part of the investors,” Osmeña said.
In his news conference, the mayor said he will not stop Garganera from appealing the court decision before the Supreme Court.
“He can bring it anywhere he wants. He can bring it to China, to the United Nations or even to the Vatican to ask the pope to excommunicate the SRP or Cebu City. Our enemies have a very shallow mind. They don’t care about the future of the city, all they care about is their political ambitions,” he said.
As to the commitment fee, Vice Mayor Michael Rama said it was the fourth time that such was discussed, but only the first time that the desire was formally put into writing.
Accounting
The City Council also asked the City Treasurer’s Office to inform it about funds from national offices so that proper liquidation can be made.
This, after a financial assistance of more than P260,000 that remained unliquidated for 12 years delayed the release of a P15-million Philippine Tourism Authority (PTA) donation to the Cebu City Government.
Of the amount, P10 million is for the sprucing up of Rizal Park by the City Hall while the P5 million is for the legislative building’s furniture and other fixtures.
In its regular session last Monday, the city council approved the committee on budget and finance’s observations on the proposed 2008 annual budget of P303.414 million for the special accounts and P2.075 billion for the general fund.
The total budget of 2.379 billion is P167 million more than this year’s budget, as the allocation includes an additional amount for the mandated salary increase, said City Councilor Jose Daluz III, committee chairman. (RHM/LCR)
