Wednesday, September 24, 2008 ‘Mr. Palengke’ offers to pay for City’s anti-dengue ads
AGREEING with the urgent need to air Cebu City Hall’s anti-dengue commercials, Sen. Mar Roxas volunteered to pay for the airing service fee of ABS-CBN Cebu amounting to P313,600.
In a press statement faxed to Sun.Star Cebu yesterday afternoon, Roxas said he read about the issue on the public advisory on dengue in the newspaper.
After learning of the irregularities in the airing of the ads, which will keep the City from paying ABS-CBN Cebu, the senator offered to pay for the airtime instead.
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“I read in Sun.Star about the civic deed of Mayor Osmeña in placing advertisements on television under a contract of the City Government. I informed Mayor Tommy that I will pay for the ads because I support his anti-dengue campaign and I believe that he acted with the urgent aim to stop the spread of dengue,” Roxas said in a press statement.
In a phone interview yesterday, Osmeña confirmed the senator’s pledge.
Roxas will be in Cebu City this Saturday to turn over the payment and to discuss with the mayor other plans to intensify the campaign against the dengue virus.
The mayor said he has received offers from private citizens to pay for the ads but when the senator said that he will shoulder the cost, he readily accepted it.
“He just asked me what this is all about so I told him that it’s the bureaucracy; that we have to go through a lot of process. We’re talking about saving lives here, why should we delay it? Then he said he’ll take care of it, so I’m very happy,” Osmeña said.
Presidency
In his news conference yesterday morning, the mayor said he will support Roxas’ bid for the presidency, but will decline any offer from political parties to run for vice president.
He said he does not agree with Roxas’ campaign style and with some of the things he says, but he will support the senator anyway.
“I don’t agree with many of the things he is saying, I don’t even agree that his campaign style is great. But disente siya na tao, and I think our country needs that so much now. We need somebody decent. Daghan kaayong tawo na bright but look where they got our country,” he said.
The mayor said he has no interest in running for vice president and nothing will change his mind because his priority will be the South Road Properties (SRP).
“My commitment is to the City but I don’t like the job. I hate government; I hate all of this. I hate COA, I hate the civil service. I hate the criminal justice system. I love Cebu City, so I will just have to deal with all these things,” he added. (LCR )
