CEBU, Philippines - Mayor Tomas Osmeña has cancelled the city’s plan to spend P114,985,000 to purchase more vehicles for the city and instead decided to spend the amount for the implementation of various projects in the urban barangays and the granting of cash assistance to the senior citizens.
The Cebu City Development Council (CCDC) had passed a resolution amending some provisions of the Annual Investment Plan of 2009 by deleting the city’s plan to spend the amount for the purchase of vehicles.
Osmeña said instead of buying more vehicles, the city would appropriate P5,608,910 for the construction of mini dam in Barangay Apas and a similar project in Barangay Busay worth P2,650,000.
Other projects include the repair and improvement of drainage systems and concreting of roads in some areas of barangays Quiot, Tisa, Kinasang-an, Punta Princesa, Bulacao and Basak-San Nicolas.
“Kana maoy maayong project nga unahon sa mayor dili kay ang pagpamalit og mga sakyanan kay daghan na man og sakyanan ang City Hall ug mga barangay,” a resident of Barangay Apas said.
Osmeña wanted to construct mini dams in barangays Apas and Busay to help minimize the flow of rainwater from the mountains and control flooding in some barangays of the city during heavy rains.
The mayor said P28 million of the funds that was originally intended for the purchase of vehicles will be used to grant P4,000 cash incentives to each of the 7,000 additional senior citizens in the city who did not receive their benefits yet.
Osmeña said the city had already spent P100 million this year when it gave P4,000 to each of the 25,000 senior citizens.
Guillermo “Dodong” Casinillo, head of the Office of Senior Citizens Affair (OSCA) in Cebu City, said there are about 32,000 senior citizens in the city who applied for cash incentives.
The mayor already announced that the city will again appropriate P130 million to grant another P4,000 cash assistance to each of the senior citizens in the city this year and promised to release it by April. — Rene U. Borromeo/WAB (THE FREEMAN)