Saturday, February 02, 2008 Tomas says he didn’t stop project
STRUCTURAL work for the 20-classroom school building at the Lahug Elementary School is already completed, but the Cebu City Government has yet to bid out materials needed for the project’s completion.
Cebu City Mayor Tomas Osmeña said yesterday that he did not give instructions to stop the construction of the school building, which the contractor started to build last July.
Last Thursday, Lahug Barangay Captain Mary Ann de los Santos told reporters that the contractor has stopped working on the project for some time already and that the building remains unfinished.
Lahug barangay officials also inaugurated the four-classroom school building that they constructed using the money they raised through the “Piso Mo, Eskwelahan Ko” fund-raising project last year.
Contractor
In a phone interview yesterday, the mayor’s consultant on education, Joy Augustus Young, said the project is already completed as far as the contractor is concerned.
He explained that the contractor was only supposed to work on the structure of the building and that it would be the City Government that will do the finishing works.
The structural work covers only the skeleton of the building, such as the foundation, beams and the concrete flooring.
The City will take over the project for the finishing touches on the flooring, partitions and the ceiling works.
“As far as the contractor is concerned, nahuman na nila ang project because they’re supposed to work only on the structure, kita na ang muhuman. It is cheaper that way,” Young told Sun.Star Cebu.
He further said they are still preparing to bid out the materials for the second phase of the project.
Other barangays
Besides, he said, work cannot resume immediately since the personnel are still working on some school buildings in Tejero, Bulacao and Inayawan.
“I don’t know why they’re making an issue out of this. When we build a school, we don’t decide based on politics but on the need of each barangay. And it’s the City Schools Division that decides on that, not City Hall,” Young said.
Last May, the mayor canceled the 20-classroom school building project in Lahug after de los Santos said the City Hall did not give her barangay any project.
But after proving de los Santos wrong and pointing out to the public that City Hall built roads and classrooms in Lahug, among other projects, Osmeña gave instructions to proceed with the construction. (LCR)
