P18 billion Kawit deal up for signing today

Unless the court issues a temporary restraining order (TRO) at the last minute, today’s signing of an P18-billion joint venture agreement between the Cebu City government and the developer of Kawit property at the South Road Properties (SRP) is an all systems go.

Mayor Tomas Osmeña is expected to represent the city in the signing with officials of Universal Hotels and Resorts Inc. (UHRI) at the Crowne Plaza Galleria in Manila at around 5 p.m. today.

This as the court, as of 5 p.m. yesterday, has not issued the TRO asked by Barangay Busay councilman Amilo Lopez, who had alleged that UHRI does not have technical and financial capacity to undertake the project.

Lopez also claimed that the City Council had not given Osmeña authority to sign the JVA with UHRI officials.

Members of the opposition bloc in the council warned the mayor of legal charges should he push through with the signing.

“Kana ilang gischedule nga signing is premature. One reason is that there was a valid adjournment. The records will show that there was a valid adjournment,” Raymond Alvin Garcia said, referring to the time when the two council camps reached an impasse on the measure last week.

That time, Vice Mayor Edgardo Labella adjourned the session, as noted by the council secretariat, but allies of the Bando Osmeña-Pundok Kauswagan proceeded with the voting in a proceeding led by Councilor David Tumulak. BOPK won an easy 7-0.

Osmeña had since maintained that the resolution approved by his allies was valid.

‘THINK TWICE,

MAYOR’

But Garcia said he will personally file charges that will nullify the validity of the contract Osmeña will sign with the UHRI.

“Wala pa kahibaw what specific case to file – annulment ba of the MOA. Study pa. But personally, I will make sure nga ma-file-lan og kaso kay dili sakto ang gibuhat and disadvantageous ang kontrata,” he said.

Officials from the Barug Team Rama PDP Laban were invited to the signing but all declined.

Labella said Osmeña should think twice before closing the deal because the project involves a casino, while the stalled development on the 45-hectare lot at SRP involves a sports facility.

“We have so many casinos already and the President (Rodrigo Duterte) made a declaration that he is against casinos,” Labella wrote in a text message to The FREEMAN.

Councilor Joel Garganera also questioned the validity of the resolution since Councilor Margarita Osmeña had moved to defer the approval of 200page minutes of the regular sessions last August 7 and August 8.

Councilor Pastor Alcover Jr., for his part, lashed back at Osmeña for saying that Lopez’s case is just “harassment since the opposition cannot win in the next elections if the project pushes through.”

“Klaro nga ilang pakamatyan ug ilang iduso ang proyekto. Klaro nga kining project, pangelection ni. Fundraising for election, dili pangsilbi sa katawhan,” Alcover told reporters.

If the mayor is really concerned about Cebuanos’ employment, Alcover said he should approve the permits of the firms that bought the 45-hectare lot at SRP as it would spell

thousands of jobs.

FEELING PROUD

Osmeña political nemesis, former mayor Michael Rama, said he was proud of his allies for standing on their ground that the JVA will be “disadvantageous” to the city.

“Daghan man giingon nga dili maayo pagkadraft. It will eventually bring prejudice to the whole city…Dili gyud siya advantageous sa Cebu,” he said in a phone interview yesterday.

Rama said Labella and Barug councilors did the right thing by objecting to the two projects – the joint venture and the proposal to put up a landfill in Binaliw.

“I was very proud that they have stood up and they made very clear their position because clear man to nga namatay naman to ang pirmiro nga resolution,” he said.

Osmeña, meanwhile, just shrugged off the opposition’s absence in today’s signing.

“We invited all of them because this is the program of the Cebu City government. If they want to ignore it, that’s fine. That’s their option. This is not an affair of Bando Osmeña but of the city government. Personally, I don’t want them to be there. If they won’t come, malipay kaayo ko. (laughs),” he said.