Kawit project in dads’ hands
Will the Cebu City Council give the go signal for the P18 billion development at the South Road Properties (SRP)?
The council is expected to discuss the matter today, particularly the proposed resolution to authorize Mayor Tomas Osmeña to enter into a contract with Universal Hotels and Resorts Incorporated (UHRI) owned by Cebuano business tycoon John Gokongwei.
UHRI wants to build convention centers, restaurants, hotels, mall, casino, park, and theater, among other worldclass integrated development, at what used to be the Kawit Island at the SRP.
Osmeña said he expects questions from opposition councilors. Should the council junk the proposed development, the mayor said he is willing to wait for the next set of councilors.
“Well, we have to wait and change the council in the next elections. Wala tay mahimo, di ba?” he said.
He also warned the council: “Mosumbong gyod ko sa mga tawo.
Sige, turn it down para next elections, naa koy estorya ihatag sa mga tao. Ilisan silang tanan puros mga badlungon. Tingali mahadlok gyod sila,” he told reporters.
The council's presiding officer, Vice Mayor Edgardo Labella, said the council will approve the project after “meticulous scrutiny” and if it finds it will be advantageous to the city.
Councilor Jose Daluz III said the council will have to review the contract since it is its mandate to protect the city's interest.
“The problem with the mayor is that he thinks he is always right. We are also looking at the best interest of the majority. Dili na exclusive ra niya,” Daluz told The FREEMAN.
Councilor Raymond Alvin Garcia said he is in favor of the development and leans towards approving the unsolicited proposal. Like Daluz, however, he said it is important to scrutinize the terms of the contract to ensure that the city will not be shortchanged.
He said one of his concerns is a traffic plan for the SRP as the area is becoming a traffic chokepoint. He also wants to look into the project's environmental impact, sewage plan, energy supply, waste management, and financial sustainability.
Osmeña has said that the project will be of no cost to the city government since UHRI will lease the eighthectare Kawit Island for 50 years.
After 50 years, and if the contract of lease is not extended, the city will own the development, which is expected to generate billions of pesos and will allow the city to finance scholarship programs.
If the council gives its go signal, construction will start next month.
Osmeña said the project will be named “Isla de la Victoria” after the late Elpidio “Jojo” de la Victoria, former project director of the city's Bantay Dagat Task Force. He was killed reportedly because of his crusade against illegal fishing.
“Isla dela Victoria will put the spotlight on the SRP. It will be accessible by sea taxi directly from Mactan Airport. It will be the hub for the ferries and cruise ships that will come, and for the seaplane airline that is already there. It will be the shining beacon of the Visayas,” Osmeña said.
Joel Mari Yu, the mayor's consultant for economic and business development, said he is hoping the Council will consider the long term effects of the project.
He said that aside from the fact that the project will generate more jobs, it will also generate taxes for the city government, including direct revenue in terms of rental compensation.
“The project is also a project that will consume power, is a project that will consume water and it will generate a lot of downstream the economic activity, it will generate a lot of indirect jobs and finally it raise the value of property all over the SRP,” Yu said.
He assured that the executive department followed the legal processes in negotiating for the project.
He said the unsolicited proposal is an incorporated joint venture agreement between the city and the Gokongwei group, which, for him, is advantageous to the city.
“Let me explain: An incorporated means we are not forming the third party corporation. The joint venture corporation we are allowing this thing to be developed on the basis of simple contract, the contract that will provide maximum latitude to both sides the local government and to Gokongwei in fulfilling objectives of the project,” he said.