Councilors OK P80M fund for school repairs

The Cebu City Council has approved the allocation of P80 million to the city’s Special Education Fund (SEF) to fund the repair of the 531 classrooms that were damaged by  the Oct. 15 earthquake.

In yesterday’s City Council session, the councilors also signified their interest in joining the mayor’s Reduction of Danger Zones (REDZ) task force which received P4 million from the Supplemental Budget 2.

Local School Board chief Ester Cubero said  they bought P12 million worth of construction materials to jumpstart the repair of the classrooms. She said they need P30 million to complete repairs.

The SEF gets its allocation from  one percent of the proceeds of real property taxes collected by the city.

As of December last year, the Local Disaster Risk Management Fund (LDRRMF) still has P105 million.

Only P20 million of the fund was transferred to the Trust Fund leaving a balance of P85 million. The Trust Fund still has a remaining balance of P18 million.

The council which is dominated by the Bando Osmeña-Pundok Kauswagan (BO-PK) bloc also signified interest in fielding some of its councilors into the REDZ task force.

Councilor Gerry Carillo suggested the inclusion of Councilors Sisinio Andales, Alvin Dizon,  Nida Cabrera, Margot Osmeña and himself in the task force. He said he will file a resolution for this.

“There will be good synergy if they participate. It will be easier to approve plans and budgets if they will be part of the efforts,” said Joey Daluz III, REDZ project director.

“We are still deciding if the (P4 million) will be used for the 5-meter access road in block 27 or for the start of riprap constructions along the river. We still have to sit down with the Engineering department,” Daluz said.

For the 2014 annual budget, Daluz said they allocated P30 million for REDZ. Osmeña said REDZ should also access national funds to fund their projects.

Dizon also supported the REDZ initiative to meet with settlers affected by the clearing operations in Mahiga Creek.

“We must not be made to choose between the interest of waterways and the interest of the urban poor. It should be balanced,” Dizon said.

In a later press conference, Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama said he does not have a problem with the BO-PK bloc joining the REDZ task force. Joy Cherry S. Quito and Jose Santino S. Bunachita