I would like to welcome back to the Philippines San Pedro Calungsod. His canonization in Rome last week made Filipinos, especially us Cebuanos, very proud. Let’s continue to pray for San Pedro to also inspire others with his miraculous ways.
I thank San Pedro for sparing our beloved Cebu from typhoon Ofel. I am happy that we have a new saint whom we can identify with because he is a Visayan youth who sacrificed his life in defense of his faith.
I seek inspiration from San Pedro’s life and I hope that the youth of today will also do the same. They face many life challenges and it’s fitting for them to look up to San Pedro as their model. Viva San Pedro Calungsod!
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Many are wondering why the Cebu City Council is in a rush to see that the Rallos heirs are paid P133 million for their lot in Sambag 1 which the city is now using as a road when the Court of Appeals already nullified their money claim.
Mayor Mike Rama questioned the validity of the Rallos claim months ago after finding out that a court decision validated the donation of the land to the Cebu City government.
The Supreme Court affirmed the P133 million claim when told that information on the land donation was not made available at the time. The donation of the property to Cebu City was made in a contract that was sealed by a Court of First Instance decision. That fact was not known in past administrations. The reason as to why the said information didn’t surface is something that the previous administration should explain to the public.
I think the Supreme Court can’t ignore this crucial information in deciding the case. The City Council should remember that what Mayor Rama is protecting is the hard earned money of the people. The City Council is also expected to do the same as part of the oath of office which they took at the start of their term.
It is for the best interest of Cebu City for the council to await the final decision that would resolve two conflicting decisions, one by the Supreme Court and the other by the Court of Appeals.
The city government already paid the Rallos heirs a whopping P50 million years back and yet they continue to seek additional payment of another P133 million.
The release of the P50 million payment made during the administration of then mayor Tommy Osmeña was made without the knowledge and approval of the City Council. I think the payment was highly questionable.
Now the City Council wants Mayor Rama to also pay the Rallos heirs despite their contradicting opinion with that of the executive. I think the legal issue should first be resolved before we decide wether or not to pay the Ralloses. Public interest should be protected before we serve the interest of the private claimants.
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The One Cebu party of Gov. Gwen Garcia is doing its best to bolster the chance of winning of its candidates in the 2013 election by going around the province and distributing checks of financial aid to the different town officials.
This is a built-in advantage of the administration which uses government funds in the in the pretext of financial assistance and taking credit for the generosity.
Is the opponent just watching and doing nothing to counter these moves?
Gov. Gwen Garcia knows her politics and is using it to the hilt to help her brother, Pablo John, win the gubernatorial race against Liberal Party candidate Hilario “Junjun” Davide III.