Tom expects continued services of towing firms

CEBU, Philippines - Mayor Tomas Osmeña yesterday said that while he is out of the country for weeks, he would want the Citom-hired private towing companies to continue roaming around Cebu City streets in search for illegally parked vehicles.

The city is now hiring the services of Road Warriors and One-Stop Towing Services to assist Citom in pulling out of the roads vehicles that cause traffic congestion.

The towing of illegally parked vehicles on the streets was stopped for the past few months after Osmeña had filed a leave of absence when he went to the United States for the treatment of his urinary bladder cancer.

Vice Mayor Michael Rama, who served as acting mayor that time, does not know why the towing of illegally parked vehicles was stopped, although he remembers that the City Council discussed the issue late last year.

Some members of the Council brought up the issue on the floor because someone is reportedly complaining that while the private towing companies are collecting exorbitant towing fees, the city only receives a little share out of the fines.

Osmeña got dismayed because while the city had collected P719,950 share from the towing fees of the private towing companies for January and February last year, the amount went down to only P132,740 for the same period this year.

The mayor did not make further comments on the issue that the low revenue collection of Citom on the first two months this year is because of Rama who is “so lenient in adjudicating the fines”.

This after Rama said it is not him who will adjudicate the traffic fines, but city administrator Francisco “Bimbo” Fernandez and Citom executive officer Arnel Tancinco.

Osmeña yesterday said that in adjudicating traffic fines, those erring drivers who are registered voters in Cebu City may be charged only with 20 percent of the total amount of fines, and 50 percent for the out-of-the-city residents.

The mayor yesterday personally observed the traffic situation somewhere in Natalio Bacalso South National Highway and said that the drivers need discipline because they just park their vehicles beside the roads that obviously hamper traffic flow.

He ordered Tancinco to clear the roads, particularly the highways, of any obstacles not later than one month. or a feasibility study on the BRT system recently. — Rene U. Borromeo and Ferliza C. Contratista/MEEV   (THE FREEMAN)