Give mayor a free hand
I am happy and welcome the move of Cebu City Mayor Mike Rama in going to court to settle the issue of whether the City Council has the rightful authority to prohibit the chief executive from marketing and negotiating for the sale of lots in the South Road Properties (SRP).
In my study of the Philippine Constitution and some laws, there are powers that belong to the executive, which the legislative department cannot interfere with. I humbly submit that the performance of the mayor in marketing and negotiating for the possible sale of the SRP is an executive prerogative. The council has no power to stop him but of course it is within the power of the legislative to review the sale of property.
The situation could be likened to the power of the president to negotiate and enter into treaties and international agreements that require the ratification of the Senate by a two thirds vote.
The chief executive is given a free hand to negotiate and enter into these agreements but the legislature comes in afterward to review and ratify them. This is the principle of check and balance in a democratic setting.
I wish the City Council would consider this and give the mayor a free hand. The council should be reminded that nobody in particular owns the SRP, which is owned by the people of the City of Cebu who are paying for the loan secured to finance the 300-hectare reclamation project.
I cannot fathom the logic of the City Council in passing an ordinance that prohibits the incumbent mayor from negotiating a sale and marketing the SRP.
What are they so fearful about when the transaction is still subject for review and ratification? I am amused and confused by the logic exhibited by the City Council which would rather give the authority to negotiate a sale and market the SRP to a private entity in the Cebu Investment and Promotion Center (CIPC) that has no mandate from the people and is therefore not accountable to the people compared to the mayor who is elected.
I am confident that the court will settle this nagging issue in the days to come.
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I watched the Senate Blue Ribbon Committee hearing on the pork barrel scam and was amazed by the revelation of Grace Pulido Tan, Commission on Audit chairperson, about the involvement of some legislators.
Now that Napoles is in government custody I think it will be all systems go in the prosecution of culprits involved in wasting the hard earned money of the people in graft and corruption.
We have seen the outrage of people in the Million People March. Cebu Archbishop Jose Palma is asking a valid question – what’s next? He’s asking citizens and rally organizers what should be the next step in protesting against the abuse and misuse of the pork barrel.
I believe a clear direction and objective of all activities is needed. It’s not enough that we just march or hold rallies. There are many ways to articulate our anger over the pork barrel system. We need to consolidate ranks and coordinate activities that are sustainable. The momentum is there. Let’s continue coordinated activities to push the government to totally abolish the pork barrel.
I stated before that the pork barrel has to be scrapped totally because it has become a source of graft and corruption. Let’s make history by having legislators that don’t feed on a pork barrel but focus on their main job of crafting good laws. Leave the implementation of infrastructure projects to chief executives in the national and local governments.
