Tacloban mayor denies Lacson claim

TACLOBAN CITY, Philippines—Tacloban City Mayor Alfred Romualdez denied a claim made by former Senator Panfilo Lacson that the mayor had asked him to advance his city’s share of the taxes collected by the national government.

Romualdez told reporters here that on the contrary, it was the the presidential assistant on reconstruction and rehabilitation who had offered to advance Tacloban’s internal revenue allotment or IRA.

Tacloban City Mayor Alfred Romualdez. INQUIRER FILE PHOTO

“No, no, no. He offered to me na i-advance ‘yung IRA and I turned him down,” the mayor said.

Tacloban has an annual IRA allotment of about P450 million.

“The city does not need to make a cash advance. What we need is assistance, hindi bale (not an advance),” Romualdez said.

“If you make bale, that means you’ll get all your money for six months and which we’ll spend for one or two months. So on the third month, we have no more money. So what, I’ll close down city hall because we’re bankrupt?” Romualdez said.

“When it comes to help, you help us for five months, give others dole-out, then we will be given IRA. What’s that?”

Romualdez said that while he received more than P230 million from the government through its RAY (Reconstruction Assistance on Yolanda) program, Tacloban did not receive any other financial assistance from the government.

The amount was intended for the repair of the City Hall, public market and the Tacloban astrodome, which served as the main evacuation center during the onslaught of Yolanda.

The repair work on the astrodome has already begun while that on the public market and the City Hall has yet to be start. However, minor repairs were started at the City Hall with the funds partly used from the financial assistance it received from private donors and organizations.

The city government received more than P30 million from the donors, a portion of which was used by the local government to purchase 10 hectares of land in the northern part of the city for a resettlement site.

Romualdez said he was doing everything to restore normalcy in Tacloban after it was ravaged by Yolanda but could do more for lack of money.

 
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