Junjun bent on seeking reelection despite ombudsman ruling

MANILA, Philippines - Makati Mayor Junjun Binay is seeking reelection despite the ruling of the Office of the Ombudsman dismissing him from government service and perpetually disqualifying him from holding public office.

Binay said there is no reason for him not to file his certificate of candidacy (COC).

“Experts on election laws are saying there is no reason for me not to file. I will definitely file my COC this week,” he told reporters when he accompanied his father, Vice President Jejomar Binay, in filing his COC for president with his running mate Sen. Gregorio Honasan yesterday.

The ombudsman ruling was issued last week in connection with the alleged overpriced construction of the Makati City Hall Building II.

The mayor said he has yet to receive a copy of the ruling. He has 10 days from receipt to file a motion for reconsideration.

“What we are worrying now is that there is an evil design here. Before, suspension; now, removal from office. It is very obvious that there is a plan to keep our family out of government service,” he said.

Blue certification

Despite allegations of wrongdoing against the Makati mayor, the Commission on Audit (COA) lauded the city government for its accomplishments last year.    

State auditors said Makati received a “Blue Certification Award” from the ombudsman for its high level of compliance with “ease of doing business standards for business-friendly and anti-fixing processes.”

COA said the completion of the controversial Makati Science High School building was among the city government’s major achievements.

In an annual audit report released over the weekend, state auditors said 11 departments or offices of the locality were issued ISO certification “due to its continuing effort and delivery of quality services.”

“The city was also a platinum awardee of ISO 37120 on Sustainable Development of Communities by the World Council on City Data, which measures a city’s social, economic and environmental performance,” state auditors said.

The audit team said the National Competitiveness Council, composed of representatives of the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) and the private sector in collaboration with the United States Agency for International Development, gave Makati the most competitive city award in the 2014 Cities and Municipalities Index.

Makati was also awarded with the e-Readiness Leadership Award from the Department of the  Interior and Local Government, Department of Science and Technology and the DTI “for its initiative in integrating information and communication technology to hasten the delivery of public services, improve revenue collection and promote transparency in its systems and operations.”

 Infrastructure projects

The COA report said Makati funded 70 infrastructure projects worth P4.035 billion.

Records show 53 projects or 75.71 percent have been completed consisting of public schools, public buildings, sports facilities and health centers.

“During the year, four major buildings were finished… the three-story San Isidro Community Complex, the Carmona Sports Complex, the Makati Science High School building and the Rizal Health Care Center. Of the 53 completed projects, 48 were land improvements consisting of drainage improvement, road concreting and blocking,” state auditors said. 

The COA report also cited the city government for its P520-million allocation for education, including the purchase of educational or instructional materials and school uniforms under the project Free and Relevant Excellent Education.

“These educational or instructional materials and school supplies were distributed to 87,809 public school students of the City – 6,409 from pre-school, 49,003 elementary and 32,397 high school students,” state auditors said. 

“As a result, there was a decrease in the drop-out rate by .58 percent and 1.52 percent in the enrollees of elementary and secondary schools, respectively, from the immediately preceding academic year,” the audit team added.

Feeding program, health care

State auditors said Makati City also rolled out a supplementary feeding program for undernourished school children. Free lunch was provided daily to 4,493 underweight elementary pupils for 120 days. 

The COA report said Makati launched the Palanan health care facilities on a 24/7 concept to offer services such as general outpatient department, consultation, pre-natal checkup, family planning services, minor surgery and basic laboratory services among others.

State auditors said there was a decrease in the malnutrition prevalence rate in the city from 1.82 in 2013 to 0.64 in 2014. The city again bagged the Nutrition Honor Award, the highest award given by the National Nutrition Council. 

There was an increase of 120,051 in the 33 barangays as Makati Health Plus Card members during the year, the audit team said.

For dogs

Even dogs benefited from the city’s programs and projects, according to COA, which reported that out of 20,431 dogs, 76.2 percent or 15,561 were given free anti-rabies vaccine.

State auditors said Makati was able to give burial assistance to 640 families who requested assistance while a total of 24,782 residents were also enrolled at the PhilHealth Para sa Masa Program. – With Michael Punongbayan