Rama begs vendors’ trust on Carbon development

CEBU, Philippines — Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama has appealed to the vendors of the Carbon Public Market to trust him as he is working for their welfare and his decision-making is not influenced by anyone.

As reported by the city’s Public Information Office (PIO), the Cebu2World Development, Inc., the subsidiary of Megawide Construction Corporation that is implementing the Carbon Modernization Project, announced that groundbreaking for the start of returning Freedom Park as a park is set for September 8.

“Saligi lang ang mayor, kay wala man ni nabaligya ang mayor. Manguli man gani og kwarta ang mayor sa mga tawo nga nagsuportar niya pagka-eleksyon,” said Rama.

Rama had a walkthrough at the Carbon Public Market on Monday to check its status after the demolition of the structures in Freedom Park and the transfer of the vendors to the Carbon Interim Building.

Aside from some city officials, Megawide officials also accompanied the mayor as he checked the Freedom Park and informed him that the groundbreaking would be done on September 8 so that construction work could proceed since the area had already been fully cleared.

The park, as the name suggests, is a place where Cebuanos used to bravely gather in public to denounce the unfair policies of the then governing Americans.

Aside from that, the area used to be a vibrant setting for gatherings where people exchanged ideas about certain issues.

The new Freedom Park is envisioned to have tree-lined pathways — that all lead to the “Freedom” obelisk — for people to aimlessly wander around while being greeted by the warm smiles of the vendors accordingly.

As the restoration design shows, the lush greenery will also give the public a sense of nature amid the bustling market.

Rama said that the time for him to continue explaining to the vendors about his intentions already passed, particularly on his vision of a Singapore-like city.

“Kay kanang magsige ka’g pagpasabot, pasabot ana ang mga tawo basin gusto nila ang gubot. Dili man ko gusto anang utok nga gubot, kay ang utok sa mayor hapsay. Therefore, humana ang pagpasabot,” said Rama.

He said that as the city’s father, he will continue doing what he can for the welfare of his constituents.

“Walay laing tumong si Mike Rama, mao ra gyud ang pagtul-id sa hiwi, pagnindot sa bati. So I wish dili mag-una ang duda; kun dili, magdaghan ang tuo. Ang pagtuo, bunga na sa pagwagtang sa kahadlok. Mopatigbabaw na ang kadasig ug kaisog. Hangtud moabot na ngadto sa ibabaw, hinganlan na og pagsalig. Pero kung ang imong pagsalig wala kay gibuhat, faith without action is dead,” said Rama.

Restoration of the old Freedom Park and modernization of the biggest public market of Cebu island, the Carbon Market, is part of Rama’s vision of making the city, Singapore-like, clean, green, and progressive. — GMR (FREEMAN)