Tuesday, August 28, 2007 Regional agencies thank mayor for forum on transfer By Sheila Covarrubias
MEMBERS of the Regional Executives Association of Western Mindanao (Reawesmin) Incorporated and the Regional Employees Union expressed gratitude to Mayor Celso Lobregat for initiating the recent meeting with Secretary Silvestre Bello, allowing them the opportunity to pour out their sentiments concerning the regional transfer issue.
The gathering, held at the City Hall conference room morning of August 22 and at the Western Mindanao State University (WMSU) social hall in the afternoon of the same day, turned out to be a no-holds barred forum, as both regional directors and employees took turns expressing concerns over the transfer law while other members aired difficulties encountered as a result of the transfer to Pagadian City.
Mayor Lobregat initiated the meeting between the REAWESMIN, Inc. and the Regional Employees Union and the Secretary for Regional Concerns to enlighten both parties on Executive Order 429, the law ordering the transfer of the regional center from Zamboanga to Pagadian.
The Reawesmin, led by Science and Technology Regional Director Brenda Nazareth, said the forum reinforced the group's pending call for the retention of the regional center.
The regional directors have described the transfer order to be impracticable based on the following grounds: partial centrality of Pagadian City in Region 9, budgetary constraints, and the non-inclusion of EO 429 in the 2007 expenditure program.
Representatives of the Regional Employees Union also hailed the gathering as a good opportunity for them to air their side on the transfer issue.
Employees who moved to Pagadian by virtue of directives from higher authorities complained that the effects of the transfer are taking their toll on their family relations, work efficiency, and financial condition.
Employees from the Department of Education specifically lamented that the Pagadian local government has not complied with its promise to provide them with housing, office building, transportation and the safety and protection--things that they can enjoy in Zamboanga City.
"Pagadian City cannot provide our requirements," the regional employees told Secretary Bello during the forum.
The regional directors and the employees also thanked Lobregat for supporting them in their call for the retention of the regional center here as well as for providing all the requirements of a regional center.
