HAD the Cebu City government-Capitol land swap deal push through in 2008, city officials led by then mayor and now south district Rep. Tomas Osmeña could already be investigated by the Ombudsman.
Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama gave this statement yesterday amid Osmeña’s intervention in the city government’s action on occupants temporarily staying at block 27.
Rama said Representative Osmeña should be grateful to him for opposing the land swap deal.
The botched land swap, would have involved block 27 of the North Reclamation Area and 93-1 properties of the Capitol.
However, Osmeña told Cebu Daily News in a separate interview that this was Rama’s twisted view or reasoning.
Osmeña said how could one be happy or grateful if the 5,000 families (93-1 occupants) would be sad.
Rama said that he saw that the swapping of block 27, with an estimated cost of about P500 million, to pay off the unpaid dues of 93-1 occupants amounting to only P187 million was impractical and disadvantageous to the city government.
“That lot is part of the assets of the city and Mike Rama was able to prevent it from being swapped,” he said.
In 2008, Cebu City government then led by Osmeña and the Capitol led by Gov. Gwen Garcia were finalizing the land swapping of block 27 for the 93-1 properties.
The 93-1 properties are those properties covered by the 93-1 Cebu provincial ordinance setting the guidelines to dispose several province owned properties in Cebu City to the actual occupants.
The deal went sour after then Vice Mayor Rama’s speech at the City Council accusing the Capitol officials of dawat limpyo or getting the better end of the deal.
Rama also said that had the land swap deal pushed through, the city government would also no longer have an area to use as a temporary shelter for families whose homes were demolished.
“But that area has not been made a permanent relocation site,” he said.
He said he wanted the occupants to vacate area so that the city could use it for more productive projects.
“In due time we will have to get it back so it can be more productive,” he said.
He was referring to block 27 as being identified as a “reserve” for disposal or joint venture to raise revenues, which the city government could use to pay its South Road Properties loans in case the reclamation project couldn’t earn enough to pay its debts.
Rama criticized Osmeña yesterday for helping the block 27 occupants to have their water reconnected.
“Under what capacity is he doing that? Ug ila nang gibuhat siguro sila sad ang mo sulbad sa problema sa relocation anang mga tawhana,” Rama said.
Rama ordered the electric and water connections of the at least 26 families staying in the lot cut off last June 30.
He also ordered Alvin Santillana, operations head of the City Disaster Risk Reduction Management Council to negotiate with the block 27 occupants to leave the area.
The block 27 occupants are mostly families whose houses along the the Mahiga creek and J. de Veyra Road were demolished earlier.
Osmeña together with Councilor Alvin Dizon, City Council’s committee on housing head, visited the area last Sunday.
Osmeña called Rama’s actions as “inhuman.”
Osmeña also said that the city government had several lots in the SRP near the slaughterhouse where these people could be transferred. /Edison delos Angeles, Correspondent