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Saturday, March 19, 2005
‘Entire recla project belongs to Cebu City’
CEBU CITY -- A former Regional Development Council (RDC) co-chairperson and private sector representative said the entire 295-hectare South Reclamation Project (SRP) belongs to Cebu City.
Dr. Eliezer Wong, whose term ended in 1996, said he did not know that the 20-hectare of the original 330-hectare SRP, which was supposed to be reclaimed by the then Municipality of Talisay, was already deleted from the plan in 1998.
Wong said Pond C belongs to Talisay, and both Mayor Tomas Osmeña and Rep. Eduardo Gullas (Cebu, 1st district) knew this.
The sub-loan agreement between Land Bank of the Philippines and the Cebu City Government provides that Cebu City may enter into another sub-loan agreement with Talisay City to reclaim the 20-hectare portion.
But this did not materialize because Talisay Mayor Socrates Fernandez failed to get the Municipal Council's approval to provide a counterpart to the loan.
Apology
"They didn't know how to go about the loan so Pond C was later cancelled. Congressman Gullas has to clarify himself if he is actually referring to Pond C when he claims that 50 hectares of the SRP belong to Talisay. He has to come up with an apology if he is referring to Pond C," Wong told Sun.Star Cebu Friday night.
"Dili na unta ni magubot. Hasta ang mga vendors sa Talisay naapil kay nasuko naman ang mayor. Nisamot og kadugay ang titulo (A conflict could have been avoided. The vendors were dragged into the issue because the mayor (Osmeña) already got angry. The title got delayed)," he added.
Sun.Star Cebu tried but failed to reach Gullas Friday. But Talisay City Attorney Aurora Econg said the congressman, who was the first Talisay City mayor, was not referring to Pond C. Econg said Pond C already belongs to Talisay.
Talisay is claiming the portion within the Bulacao River and the municipal boundary monument (MBM) 30 of the Talisay's municipal waters, she said.
Offer stands
"There is a titled property there that they covered," Econg told Sun.Star Cebu Friday night.
Econg said Talisay City will stick to their claim and to their earlier offer that Cebu City should leave out 53.44 hectares of the 295-hectare SRP in their application for special patent.
Meanwhile, Mayor Osmeña presented documents proving that Gullas knew about the loan for the SRP as early as 1993.
Osmeña downplayed the congressman's claim that Talisay, then a municipality, was not consulted when the National Government entered into a loan with Japan for the SRP.
Gullas was present during the Regional Development Council (RDC) meeting held on Sept. 17, 1993 at the Baseline Restaurant, Cebu City when the body approved RDC Resolution 47.
No objection
Resolution 47 approved and endorsed the then Metro Cebu Development Project (MCDP) 3 for funding assistance under the Overseas Economic Cooperation Fund (now Japan Bank for International Cooperation) 19th yen credit package.
MCDP 3 includes the Cebu South Coastal Road, Cebu Urban Circumferential Road, plus five distributor roads, and Cebu South Reclamation.
Osmeña was then the RDC chairman and presided over the RDC full council meeting that day.
According to an excerpt from the minutes of the meeting, Gullas discussed his query from the Department of Trade and Industry about the criteria in the selection of regional industrial centers.
Since the minutes did not state any objection from the congressman during the meeting, this meant that he endorsed the provisions of Resolution 47.
"What a big liar! A certified documented liar. He himself (had) endorsed it and he (recently) said he was not consulted?" the mayor said.
Eliminated
Osmeña also downplayed claims of Wong that both he (Osmeña) and Gullas knew about the inclusion of Talisay City in the SRP.
"Yes and no. It was during that time when Talisay, then a municipality, was supposed to claim 20 hectares of the SRP, which was Pond C. But since they did not pursue it, it was eliminated (from the original plan). I think it's no longer there," the mayor told a news conference.
Osmeña also showed reporters a letter dated Sept. 22, 1998 sent by Fernandez, then Talisay town mayor, to Samuel Darza, then MCDP 3 project director.
Fernandez asked for "the specific documentation requirements needed from our end to ensure inclusion of the Talisay portion in the existing loan agreement."
He also sought the estimated cost of the project.
Osmeña explained that Fernandez was referring to the 20-hectare Pond C.
More proof
SRP manager Nigel Paul Villarete, in a separate interview, showed reporters a report of Katahira and Engineers International, consultants to the SRP, dated May 31, 2002.
Katahira's report was addressed to then acting mayor Michael Rama and signed by Isoji Matsui, project manager.
Matsui said that to avoid impediments, they opted to revise the alignment of the outer boundary of the SRP.
"Pond C and E were deleted, and areas of Ponds B, A and D reduced, as it was in these areas where those aforementioned impediments abound and design of reclamation was modified to suit actual condition," the report read.
| Post your experiences to the Sun.Star Graduation section. Click here. | 2005-02-24 04:52:02
mcalvo - My graduation was unforgettable to me and to my classmates. I was so drunk the night before graduation. During the ceremony i dozed to the point of snooring even when i was already standing i was half sleeping. Our dean has to call my name twice and the person behind me has to push me just to wake me up... graduations are memorable...enjoy and congratulations to all graduates!
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(March 19, 2005 issue)
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