Saturday, August 23, 2008 Talisay crime upsurge bugs Eddiegul
AN atmosphere of fear in Talisay City would not only affect peace and order, but could also derail the city’s economic progress, an official said yesterday.
“Forget about investors coming in if the deterioration of peace and order in Talisay is not stopped,” said Rep. Eduardo Gullas (Cebu Province, 1st district) in a press conference Thursday.
Gullas, whose legislative work led to Talisay’s conversion into a city, said the much-publicized behavior of Mayor Socrates Fernandez’s adopted son, Joavan, could scare new investors away.
They would prefer to invest their hard-earned capital in other cities like Bogo, Danao, Toledo, Mandaue, Naga and Carcar, he said.
Before Talisay became a city in 2001, this former town used to receive about P50 million in Internal Revenue Allotment (IRA) shares each year. This ballooned to P163 million in its first year as a component city.
From P217 million in 2007, Talisay’s IRA shares rose to P227 million this year.
Gullas warned, however, that he would not be surprised if Talisay is left behind by the two newest component cities in the first district, Carcar and Naga, in the next two years.
Gullas is concerned that Talisay’s gains in the past seven years as a city would just go down the drain if the rising crime incidence remains unchecked.
Gullas recently advised Fernandez, a close political ally, to send his adopted son to a rehabilitation center, for the mayor and other Talisaynons’ peace of mind.
Reporters learned it was not the first time Gullas gave such an advice to Fernandez.
Before the court granted a motion for Joavan to post bail in a murder case, Gullas said he reminded Fernandez to put him in a rehabilitation facility.
Joavan stands accused of murder for the fatal shooting of jeepney driver Panfilo Barinque in Barangay Cansojong in 2006. He is currently out on bail.
Three counts of frustrated murder against him did not prosper after the victims signed affidavits of desistance.
When Joavan’s alleged misdemeanors came out in the press, Gullas said he earlier distanced himself to avoid the perception that he was meddling in the city’s affairs.
But he sensed that the matter has gotten out of hand.
In the same press conference, Gullas said he was hoping that Fernandez will finally heed his advice.
He said there were instances when his suggestions to Fernandez went ignored.
Gullas cited his call to slash the number of job-order employees at City Hall so the City can save at least P2 million per month.
The Human Resource Management Office reported that the City already hired 820 job-order workers this month.
Gullas said the number of job-order employees should depend on the City Hall offices’ needs. He noticed that some of them were seen just hanging around at City Hall.
At P2 million per month, Gullas said the savings could reach P72 million in three years, enough to fund the scholarship grants for poor Talisaynon students and construct a new Talisay City College building.
“This can be a concrete legacy that Mayor Soc can leave to the city,” he added. (GC)
