Sunday, October 21, 2007 Jade Lee contract illegal, Maquiling says By Edmund B. Sestoso
DUMAGUETE City Vice Mayor Woodrow Maquiling said the contract entered into by Mayor Agustin Perdices with private entertainment group, Jade Lee, is illegal and violated several national laws and Supreme Court rulings.
In a privilege speech, Maquiling and other members of the City Council questioned the contract entered into by the City Government with Jade Lee for the rental of a sizable portion of Quezon Park for a period of 67 days with a payment of not less than half a million pesos.
Opposition councilors Nilo Sayson and Antonio Remollo pointed out that legitimate vendors and those religiously paying their taxes to the City Government are at a disadvantage because Perdices allowed an outsider "competitor".
Sayson said, the contract itself is "killing our legitimate small businessmen" who are banking on the last two months of the year to recover their mean profits from the past months.
Maquiling stressed that the recent contract entered by Perdices with private individuals is a clear violation of Section 3, item E of RA 3019, which may cause undue injury to the City Government and is disadvantageous to the legitimate stallholders.
“We are giving unwarranted benefits to private businessmen from Manila of which resources and the money generated out of the trade fair will be brought to Manila” the vice mayor emphasized.
The vice mayor persuaded members of the council to enact resolutions and ordinances that will uphold the general welfare of the public and the majority.
“Let us not put our mayor in a dilemma and perplexing situation which will led our executive branch to perform its functions with whimsical, capricious and arbitrariness in the implementation of our null and void resolutions and ordinances because the same is repugnant, in conflict, inconsistent and clearly contrary to existing national laws.”
