Tomas says DEPW sat on drainage plan

CEBU, Philippines - Mayor Tomas Osmeña yesterday washed his hands and blamed the officials of the Department of Engineering and Public Works for failing to prepare the required Program of Works and Estimates of the P500-million drainage master plan.

The city’s drainage problem may have already solved had the city fully implemented the master drainage plan as recommended by Engr. Pedro Adonis Compendio, the consultant hired and paid P1.3 million by the city to conduct a study and come up recommendations on how to solve the problem.

The mayor explained that he cannot be blamed for the city’s failure to implement the half-billion peso drainage master plan because he did not receive a copy of the recommendations, particularly the POWE.

“Mao g’yod na sila,” Osmeña said, referring to DEPW officials, “ilang unahon kadtong mga project nga duna sila’y kikik. Unsay akong sala?”

The word “kikik” refers to commissions of projects. The mayor explained that he always acts on the documents delivered to his table because he even reads and signs documents while answering reporters during his press conferences.

The mayor made the comment after the announcement of Compendio during the City Council session that since 2006 after he came up with his recommendations the city has implemented barely a fraction of the drainage master plan projects.

Osmeña even called the DEPW, particularly assistant city engineer Kenneth Enriquez, inutile for failing to act on the recommendations for the drainage master plan.

Enriquez, who appeared before the City Council in last Wednesday’s session, explained that the P9.5-million initial drainage prevention projects involves mini-dams or water catchments that will be constructed in upper portions of barangays Apas and Busay.

Osmeña said the water catchments will help prevent the water from going down to the lowland areas, but said he did not know why the city engineers office has not acted upon on the recommendations.

Councilor Jose Daluz III, chairman of the Committee on Budget and Finance of the Cebu City Council, said he will meet with acting city engineer Nicomedes Leonor next week to find out the latest development of the city’s drainage projects.

Another issue that Daluz wants to take up with Leonor is the construction of a new building for the Carbon public market. — Rene U. Borromeo/BRP(FREEMAN NEWS)