BOARD WANTS CLOSER LOOK AT SAN FERNANDO PORT PROJECT
A businessman developing an international port in San Fernando wants to appear before the Provincial Board to air his side against Mayor Neneth Reluya.
Ruben Feliciano of First Sangat SF International Port Corp (FSSFIPC) wants a chance to address the PB, after the mayor told board members yesterday that the firm had refused to follow her executive order to stop its port project in Barangay Sangat.
PB members agreed instead to bring Mayor Reluya, Feliciano and representatives of government agencies to a committee hearing to examine the issue further. They recommended a hearing by the committees on laws and planning, chaired by PB Members Raul Bacaltos and Glenn Bercede, respectively.
During the PB’s regular session yesterday, Reluya narrated how Feliciano and his firm implemented the port project in Barangay Sangat despite missing some documentary requirements. She claimed that Feliciano’s firm has started dredging and reclamation works in the area even though he has yet to secure a permit from the Philippine Reclamation Authority.
She said that she issued the executive order against Feliciano after finding out that his company is not the same company that had applied for a clearance from the municipal government a few years back. Feliciano’s firm was originally named Sangat Bay Development Corp. but this was changed after a conflict with his previous partners, Melekon Contractors Inc.
Reluya denied Feliciano’s allegation that she had received money in exchange for having the project approved.
“She received a huge cash advance. I know she received it, I was there,” said Feliciano, who also attended the session. Feliciano said that the documents the company had secured from government agencies were not revoked and urged the PB to give him a chance to speak his side.