Rama eyes SRP sales, ‘happy residents’ in 2014
Making sure that Cebu city residents are “happy” and closing new sales in the South Road Properties (SRP) are his top priorities for year 2014, said Mayor Michael Rama.
Rama said his administration accomplished a lot last year especially in giving cash assistance to vulnerable groups and city government personnel.
City Hall released P8,000 of the P10,000 assistance to 60,000 registered senior citizens and P3,000 of a P5,000 subsidy for 11,000 Persons with Disabilities (PWDs).
Calamity assistance of P20,000 was also released in Dec. 23 to the city’s 4,200 workers, including elected officials while barangay officials received their third quarter assistance on December 19.
Rama repeated his promise to increase annual aid to senior citizens this year to P12,000, one of the highest levels in the country.
“In totality I can feel that majority of the people in the city are happy,” said Rama.
He declined to spell out his achievements this year saying it would be self-serving. He said Cebuanos will be the judge of how well he has managed the city’s affairs by 2016 election when he seeks a third term.
To generate revenue for the delivery of basic services, the city government has to sell some of its real estate, especially the reclaimed lots in the SRP.
Rama said he is targeting to dispose of the 26.3 hectare Lot 8-B which is occupied by the San Pedro Calungsod templete, and sell it for at least P5.8 billion.
SM Prime Holdings, Robinson’s Residences and Robinson’s Luxuria have expressed interest to acquire the property which has also been identified as the venue of the 2016 Eucharistic Congress.
I-Land Co. general manager Kazuhito Matsuda and Aquila Primary Corp. president William Christopher Liu Jr. wrote Rama to express their intent to lease a 12,500 square meter lot at the SRP for a retirement facility.
Cash Assistance
No schedule has been set yet for the release of the P2,000 balance which senior citizens are waiting for.
The payroll of the P2,000 balance for PWD assistance remains with the city accounting office.
Acting City Treasurer Diwa Cuevas said the amount may be released before the week ends as long as it is endorsed to her office when work resumes on Thursday.
Both outlays will be charged to the 2013 appropriation even if a new year has come since the amount was already obligated.
CHALLENGES
The Rama administration was faced with several challenges in 2013.
One was the election protest filed by former mayor and south district congressman Tomas Osmeña after he lost the May local elections.
About 20 percent of the ballots from contested precincts were already shipped to Manila for recount.
Cebu City was also affected by two calamities – the October 15 7.2-magnitude earthquake and the November 8 supertyphoon Yolanda – which placed Cebu City under storm warning signal no. 4.
“I’m very happy to see that 2013 is almost over,” said the mayor.
“This has been a year of many trials for us and I am happy to see that we were lucky with (to have survived) the earthquake and the typhoon.”
There were zero deaths in Cebu City during the typhoon after barangays evacuated families living by rivers, the coast and landslide-prone areas.
The mayor said he would not vetor a P5.9 billion budget approved by the City Council for 2014 even though it was only half of the P10.5 billion budget he proposed.
Rama said he would not longer question the approved budget and would work with it. /Doris C. Bongcac, Chief of Reporters
