FORMER Cebu City mayor Tomas Osmeña has once again defended the Cebu Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) against Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia and other officials who wanted to stop the construction of the P28.78 billion mass transport system project.
Osmeña, in a statement to media on Saturday, March 9, 2024, expressed sadness that the entire Provincial Board and 44 municipal mayors in Cebu Province would like to “destroy” the CBRT project. The League of Municipalities of the Philippines Cebu chapter passed a resolution which called for the CBRT project’s immediate stoppage as it causes traffic and blocks the facade of the Capitol building.
“We were not going to destroy the Capitol building. We will only block the view from a certain angle. Is this reason enough to stop a... project that would help half a million car-less commuters?” said Osmeña.
Osmeña also hit back at Garcia after the governor asserted the Capitol’s ownership of Osmeña Blvd. and the surrounding area from the Capitol building to Fuente Osmeña Rotunda.
“ln response to Gwen’s statement that I should get my facts straight. True, but I will remind her that she is not the judge. I will submit the same in the proper court where she cannot bully the judge. Haha!” the former mayor said.
Osmeña also reminded the public that Garcia comes from the same family who challenged the legality of the South Road Properties (SRP) and Cebu South Coastal Road (CSCR) for years and lost. The mayor is referring to the former governor and Garcia’s father, the late Pablo Garcia, who in 2016 described the Cebu City Government’s sales of lots at the SRP to private corporations as illegal and unconstitutional.
“Just imagine if the Garcias caused the cancellation of the SRP and the south coastal road. The towns from Talisay to Santander would be as rotten as ever,” said Osmeña.
The CBRT was Osmeña’s brainchild which he had been pushing when he was still mayor and then congressman of Cebu City.
It was during Osmeña’s term as mayor when the City started the discussions on the proposed BRT system to address Cebu’s transport challenges. / JJL