Know your candidate repollo to focus on traffic, flood

CEBU, Philippines — An aspirant for Cebu City Councilor vow to pass legislations that will help fast track projects that would address traffic and flood problems here.

During the #KnowYourCandidate episode of The FREEMAN yesterday, lawyer Kirk Bryan Repollo, who is also the incumbent barangay captain of Inayawan, presented his platforms should he be elected as a city councilor in the May 13 elections.

“If the projects need legislations para mapaspas ang pag-implement, I will be willing to support it and help pass measures,” he said.

Repollo said he has talked to Mayor Tomas Osmeña about projects that would address flood problem in the city.

He said the mayor wanted to put up a cistern at the South Road Properties wherein all drainage projects will be connected to that cistern.

While the drainage systems will be connected to the cistern, the city will also adopt a technology that would recycle the water collected in the tank, Repollo said.

As for the traffic, Repollo said he would push for legislations that would hasten the implementation of the Cebu Bus Rapid Transit project that has long been delayed.

It has been reported that commercial operations of the BRT is expected in the middle of 2022 because of the several activities that are pending.

Repollo said his experience in the barangay level would assist him in passing relevant measures that are relevant to the city’s constituents.

As a lawyer, he said it would also be an added legal luminary in the legislative body whose primary work is to craft laws that are responsive to the needs of its populace.

“As a barangay captain, I can identify problems sa mga tao nga kinahanglan og intervention sa City Council,” he added.

As a new barangay captain, Repollo has been the subject of the news recently because of the disagreement between him and the police on the lot where the police station will be constructed.

While he denied allegations that he refused the construction of a police station, he said there are two major reasons why the Inayawan Barangay Council offered an alternative lot for the police.

One reason is that the resolution passed by the barangay council during the previous administration did not have a provision that the body authorized the barangay captain to sign the deed of sale.

Another reason is that the one-hectare property was donated by the city government to the barangay for the multipurpose center, among others.

“I am not blocking the project. The barangay council also passed a barangay resolution proposing for the alternative lot,” Repollo said, adding that a separate resolution was also passed revoking the earlier donation of the one-hectare property.

Repollo said the barangay council has also yield to the request of the police that there should be no conditions for the donation of the alternative lot which is just few steps away from the barangay hall.

As of yesterday, he said he has not received any communication from the police yet as to the draft deed that will be signed by representatives of the barangay and the police.

Also, Police Regional Office-7 Director Debold Sinas even ordered to probe Repollo after the P122.4 million drug haul in his barangay.

Repollo admitted that he was concerned with the security of his family.

After the pronouncement of Sinas, he admitted that the barangay did not have any information as to the arrest of a certain Elymar Tampos Ancajas on the millions of drugs confiscated by the police.

Repollo said Ancajas reportedly arrived in the barangay middle of January that is why the barangay did not have the chance to investigate because they did not receive any information about possible illegal activities.

However, Repollo said the barangay assisted the police’s surveillance even if they did not know who was the subject of the surveillance, adding that a police personnel would sit outside the barangay hall to look into the activities of the subject of the surveillance not knowing it was Ancajas.

After the drug haul last March 3, Repollo said the chairman of the barangay council’s committee on peace and order went to the area.

He also went to the area when he received the same information from one of his barangay tanods but the police officials were no longer there when he arrived.

To address the issue, Repollo said he is open to have a dialogue with Sinas to present his side and discuss on the construction of the police station. — GAN (FREEMAN)