Tomas wants public to scrutinize South Road Properties

CEBU, Philippines - Cebu City Mayor Tomas Osmeña wants the public to further scrutinize developments at the South Road Properties (SRP).

A day before returning to the United States to undergo operation in his gall bladder the mayor said he welcomes the public, specially the city residents, to be aware of the SRP project and other developments in the city.

“I want the people of Cebu to scrutinize. Sure, because number one, we have nothing to hide and two, this is your project,” Osmeña emphasized.

According to him, he would welcome all questions and will answer them one by one because the residents deserve to know more about the SRP.



He added that he doesn’t mind repeating answers and explanations over the joint venture contract the city recently signed with Filinvest Land Inc. for a P25 billion project.

“To check for graft and corruption, it’s whether we got the right price for it or not,” he said.

Filinvest, according to him, was worried since they had never been insulted so much in their entire existence when their aim was merely to help the city.

In effect, Osmeña wanted also to reiterate that he welcomes any legal move that would be undertaken by the Cebu provincial government should it see any irregularity with the contract.

“Go ahead, file a case in court, not a congressional inquiry. Since when did the legislation become a court? So that is plain harassment,” he said in reference to the plan of Governor Gwendolyn Garcia’s younger brother, Cebu third district Rep. Pablo John Garcia, to seek a congressional inquiry into the joint venture of the city and Filinvest.

Osmeña said he remains positive that the transactions of other locators wanting to invest in the SRP will be smooth.

The mayor also said that he is sure that the ordinance pending at the City Council that seeks to prohibit the development of lots in the city that are owned by the Capitol will be passed.

“The City Council is not a rubber stamp of the mayor. If the vice mayor was a rubber stamp of the mayor, then we would all be happy at this time. We would have no problem, but since he had proven he is not, then 5,000 families could not sleep well at night,” Osmeña said.

He said the councilors are now well briefed on the situation and trusts them to make a good decision. — Ferliza C. Contratista/WAB (THE FREEMAN)