TWO federations that claim to have 60,000 members in Cebu City endorsed yesterday the slate of Mayor Michael Rama’s Team Rama for the May 13 elections.
The Urban Poor Solidarity Federation said they are supporting Team Rama because they believe the group will help uplift the lives of the urban poor.
“Daghan na kaayo siya ug nahimo sulod sa tulo ka tuig. Usa niana, gi-tarong niya ang pag-implementar sa socialized housing program sa Syudad (The mayor has done so many things in just three years. For one, he implemented the City’s socialized housing program well),” said the federation’s Samsin Chiu.
Reno Ventusa, who is also a member of the group, said Rama fast-tracked the approval of the subdivision plans of the different homeowners’ association in the city, allowing urban poor families to immediately own the titles to their home lots.
Ventusa recalled that before, it took three years to approve the subdivision plans. “Kapila namo na gibalik balik sa City Hall pero wa gyu’y nahimo. Pero karon, dali na lang kayo (We kept going to City Hall before, but nothing happened. Now, things get done faster),” he said.
Evangeline Abejo said that the Urban Poor Solidarity Federation is the umbrella organization of some 300 homeowners’ associations, with an estimated 50,000 members in the city.
Aside from the urban poor sector, the vendors who belong to the Cebu City Vendors’ Association (CCUVA) also endorsed Team Rama.
Decent stalls
Maria Pino of CCUVA said they are “strongly supporting” Team Rama because they believe that the group can improve the city’s markets and implement programs and projects that will address vendors’ needs.
Pino said she thanked the mayor for establishing the Garbo Asenso Sumbanan Alyansa (Gasa) Office, saying it has helped address some of the concerns of the vendors, such as providing decent stalls for them.
Pino said CCUVA has an estimated 10,000 members.
Sought for comment on the endorsement, Rama said he is thankful for the urban poor and the vendors’ support.
The group, he added, will continue to reach out and meet with people in the sitios to ensure their victory in the elections.
Rama is seeking his first reelection as mayor against a former political ally, Rep. Tomas Osmeña (Cebu City, south).
Also yesterday, the urban poor groups signed a six-point covenant or social contract with the mayor, which the latter pledged to implement if he gets reelected.
Promises
The pledges include land acquisition, community development and environmental protection; employment and livelihood; a social protection and services program; asset reforms and resource generation; and engagement and participation of the urban poor in good governance.
Under social protection, the covenant states there should be no demolition and eviction if there is no certificate of compliance with the Urban Development and Housing Act. Social protection also includes the provision of social security benefits, a health care system, and education for informal settlers and urban poor families.
Meanwhile, the Urban Poor Solidarity Foundation belied the claim of Marlene Paracueles of the Urban Poor Alliance that the Department of Interior and Local Government has forfeited the P50-million fund for poverty alleviation programs intended for Cebu City.
“To date, there is no document to prove the forfeiture of the said fund,” they said in a press statement.
The claim was that the DILG forfeited the fund because the City failed to submit a Local Poverty Reduction Action Plan.