The enormous damage brought by disasters in 2013 that hit a crescendo with supertyphoon Yolanda – the strongest storm to hit land in recorded history, the Oct. 15 7.2 magnitude earthquake, the MNLF-Misuary faction seige of Zamboange in September and the August flooding caused by the Habagat in Metro Manila eroded some of the national economic gains.
We can take comfort that had the economy not grown robustly last year, the country would have been in deeper financial straits.
Aside from the calamities – natural and human-made – 2013 was also an election year. However, one views the political exercise, it unified and may have driven a wedge deeper on social divisions.
Here in Cebu, there are many things to look forward to.
Gov. Hilario Davide III is rolling out an ambitious, rebuild-better recovery plan to the tune of P26.8 billion.
This creates opportunities in communities leveled by Yolanda and the earthquake, in terms of jobs and business engaged in supply and service.
In Cebu City, the New Year ‘s resolution of Mayor Michael Rama not to grumble anymore about the approved annual budget, reduced to almost half of what he proposed, is a factor of stability. The City Council which is dominated by his critics approved 5.89 billion of his proposed P10.8 billion budget for 2014 but he’s going to live with it.
Instead Rama said he would seriously sell South Road Properties (SRP) lots to raise P5 billion to P6 billion in additional revenues for the city.
With this show of initial composure, we hope Cebu City gets a respite from the protracted political drama between Rama and his Osmeña antagonists in the City Council.
Maybe his SRP sales would raise enough to roll out badly needed priority projects – particularly the drainage master plan and flood control projects.
Looking beyond the new year, 2014 should also see the start of serious preparations for the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (Apec) summit that will be hosted by the country in 2015. Being chosen as one of the venues of the important regional economic gatherings raises the profile of Cebu in the ASEAN and opens opportunities of tourism and trade growth.
Preparations for the 2016 hosting of the International Eucharistic Congress in Cebu will also ramp up this year. If Pope Francis actually attends it, this would be a historic affirmation of Cebu’s standing as the cradle of Christianity in Asia.