Subject to council, PB nod: CH, province sign 93-1 deal

CEBU, Philippines - After 23 years and several attempts at a settlement, the city and provincial go-vernments signed a deal that would pave the way for residents of Cebu City to remain living in lots owned by the pro-vince permanently.

The Memorandum of Agreement that Mayor Tomas Osmeña and Governor Hilario Davide III signed yesterday stipulates that the 32.4 hectares of lot, the remaining total of unpaid/unsold portions of properties whose corresponding rights and interest are covered by Provincial Ordinance No. 93-1, shall be transferred to the city through an exchange of properties.

The city government will swap the lots with 2 ½ hectares at the South Road Properties (SRP).

Once the swap is finalized, Cebu City residents living in the 32.4 hectares of provincial lots will no longer fear of being displaced.

Passed in 1993, Provincial Ordinance 93-1 aimed at providing a scheme for Cebu City residents to pay monthly amortizations so titles of the province-owned lots can be transferred to their name.

At least 2,000 household have already paid fully for the lots.

There are at least 4, 364 home lots in 11 barangays, including Kamputhaw, Capitol Site, Kalunasan, Busay, Luz, Lahug, Mabolo, Apas, Lorega, San Miguel, Kasambagan and Tejero.

Pedro Borres, 67, one of the beneficiaries of the 93-1 ordinance, could not help but be glad about the development. He has lived in Barangay Luz for almost 86 years and could not bear the thought of losing his home.

"Nalipay ko nga napirmahan na ang saad ni Mayor Tommy Osmeña nga land swapping para sa mga kabos, unya 5,000 mi ka beneficiaries ani intawn… if wala ni natuman, daghan mi nga magtiyabaw… dili nami maguol sa among pagpuyo," he told The Freeman.

Borres said many of his relatives are also beneficiaries.

Authority

The signing of the MOA, while historical to some degree, was not without controversy.

For one, Osmeña signed it even without prior authority from the City Council.

Councilor Raymond Garcia, chairperson of the council's committee on laws, warned the agreement will not be legally binding if the council will not support it.

"Of course not. The mayor cannot bind the City of Cebu without the authority of the Council. I think he knows that. Pang-showbiz lang na iyang gibuhat," Garcia said.

Garcia is an ally of former mayor Michael Rama.

For the council to support the MOA fully, a councilor would need to propose a resolution to this effect and the council as a whole will vote in its favor.

The council's presiding officer, Vice Mayor Edgardo Labella, also a Rama ally, sees nothing wrong with the MOA.

"I will be open-minded about it and I will be very objective about it. I cannot preempt what the Council would take but, of course, I will admonish the other members of the Council to be objective and open-minded…think about what's the best for the people of Cebu," he told The FREEMAN.

Like Osmeña, Davide hopes that he will get the approval of the Provincial Board.

"Nanghinaot kami nga nalipay kamo sa gibuhat namo ni Mayor Tommy ug nanghinaot pud kita nga suportaan kini sa Provincial Board."

Provincial Legal Officer Orvi Ortega said the "ceremonial" signing of the MOA was done subject to the concurrence of the City Council and Provincial Board.

The move, he said, was meant to "signify clearly their desire or intention to come to terms based on the stipulation of the MOA."

"Once approved by the PB and the Council, it will ratify the agreement earlier signed by the two local chief executives of the province and the city," he said.

He said his office found the MOA "sufficient, in order, valid and legitimate."

Under the proposed MOA, the agreement "may not be modified, amended, or otherwise varied except by a document in writing signed by both parties and concurred in by their respective legislative bodies."

It also provides that in case any one or more of the provisions contained in the agreement "shall be held invalid, illegal, or unenforceable in any respect, the validity, legality  and enforceability of the remaining provisions contained in the agreement shall not in any way be affected or impaired thereby."

Davide's request for the board to back the MOA is now with the committee on properties for further study.

Warning

Osmeña gave a warning in the event the Team Rama-dominated council chooses not to back the move.

"Naa nakoy mensahe sa mga sakop ni Mike Rama sa konseho nga magporma ko’g recall nga adunay special election kun ila kining babagan," the mayor said. (FREEMAN)