Mayor Abby’s re-election bid endorsed by former VP Jojo Binay

POWER OF PRESENCE Reelectionist Makati Mayor Abby Binay and her running mate Monique Lagdameo file their certificates of candidacy, with the backing of Abby’s father, ex-Vice President Jejomar Binay. —JOAN BONDOC

Makati Mayor Abby Binay’s re-election bid has been endorsed by her father, former Vice President Jejomar Binay.

Speaking before the Kapihan sa Manila Bay media forum on Wednesday, the former vice president, who is gunning for a congressional seat under Mayor Abby’s ticket, described her daughter as a “very good” local executive who deserves to be re-elected.

Mayor Abby is the official candidate of the United Nationalist Alliance (UNA) chaired by the former vice president.

Under the leadership of Mayor Abby, Makati has regained its fiscal strength, with 90 percent of the 2018 target – or P14.17 billion – already met in August.

The mayor said a total of 3,378 new business establishments were recorded by the Business Permit and Licensing Office (BPLO) from January to September 10 this year.

She also noted a significant increase in the number of permit renewals with 33,729 posted as of September 10, which topped by more than 900 last year’s total of 32,790 renewals.

This shows that Makati remains the location of choice for local and foreign businesses, she said.

Just last week, the Commission on Audit (COA) declared Makati as the country’s richest city, with total assets reaching P196.5 billion. It is also the first and only local government to exceed the P100 billion mark.

For more than five years, Makati has been outranked by Quezon City as the richest locality.

Since Mayor Abby took office in July 2016, the city government has implemented reforms at City Hall to facilitate business registration and promote transparency, including an aggressive campaign against fixers.

She also ordered the strict monitoring of businesses for compliance with relevant laws, in line with her thrust to restore discipline and respect for the law in the city.

Makati City also met the performance target set by the Bureau of Local Government Finance (BLGF) under the Department of Finance in 2017.

Makati achieved 100 percent of the BLGF’s total locally-sourced income target for 2017 amounting to P14.25 billion, after its actual collections from local sources reached P14.26 billion in November of 2017.

Under the administration of Mayor Abby, Makati has registered its highest revenue collection in years without increasing taxes.