MikeLigalig.com

An editorial of the Bohol Chronicle

Since the Top Honcho of City Hall had once said: I don't believe in tourism - it is of little wonder he treats the environment like a piece of s*** (pun intended).

The environment as any high school kid will see is vital to tourism. A polluted sea destroys the charisma of an island resort like Bohol, particularly the seaport of entry where the drainage outfall is situated just few meters across. A stinking drainage at the main artery at that like CPG Avenue and the polluted seawaters at the Tagbilaran City Port is a tourist embarassment and a health hazard to residents. We blame the City Mayor for both.

The City 's Top Public Servant failed to do his part of the bargain after securing a CPG Avenue concreting and a drainage improvement. He did what he is consistently good at: promising. He promised to build a waste water treatment facility -in return- whose very shadow we have yet to see.

Because of that and by not cutting the illegal connections to the city drainage last year (which he promised to do), CPG North had its worst nightmare of flooding for two years. Then he illegally opened the San Jose waste water outfall that threatened Tagbilaran Bay , its marine life and nearby resorts into extinction.

Now with the fiestas and the TBTK (4 year Boholanos world-wide homecoming) nearing, the carefree mayor's solution to yet another God-awful foul stench at CPG and near the City Public Market in Dao district is to illegally open the old outfall in the corners of CPG Aveneu and Visarra, Del Pilar and Inting streets -threatening tourism and health once again.

Indeed the mayor of this city is an Environmental Predator, no less.

The Governor Rico Aumentado had egged him through a strongly -worded letter to get his act together and save the city-by building that long-overdue waste water treatment facility. The onion-skinned City Public Servant reacts like a paranoid, insecure brat and hits back Capitol with non-sequitors like the alleged delay in the Salcon and Panglao Airport issues. Mr Diversionary Tactic at his best (or worst) again.

The City Mayor even had the gall to boast that his water treatment project will be finished earlier than the Governor's GMA-endorsed Panglao International Airport.

Aside from that, the Governor must now be particularly pissed off because even as Chief Executive of the province had in the past bent backwards to accommodate the whimsical change of behaviour of the City Mayor on the drainage issue. The arrogant mayor , at times, even behaved as if he had a higher ranking than the provincial governor even how he repeatedly claims maintaining respect to the governor.

Today, the Father of the Province is just reminding an errant son who seems unable to do his task in running a medium-sized city. It is akin to a Chairman of a conglomerate putting to task an executive of an affiliate (the City Mayor , in this case) who is sleeping on his job (figuratively and literally as well -we were told). Now Mr. NPL (Non-Performing Liability) is hot under his huge collar? Why?

The provincial top executive is just admonishing the City Mayor of his obligation under Section 17 of the Local Government Code to abate foul odor, pollution and other environmental malady in his area of responsibility.

Governor Aumentado is understandably annoyed because while he tries to develop the province into an agro-tourism entity, his very entry point - the City of Tagbilaran - is not living up to its name as a veritable gateway to paradise.

Then Mr Mayor predictably throws the blame on everyone in sight -except himself. He claims (now he does) that Capitol and allies should follow up with NEDA for the approval of the drainage. He had five years to do that when his relative Romulo Neri was on top as NEDA Chair -but he dilly-dallied and watched boxing bouts instead. Now that Neri is gone to act as GSIS Commissioner, Mr City Public Servant wails he is helpless.

The Promising Mayor also said (earlier) he had it wrapped up with DBP (Development Bank of the Philippines) for a P 400-Million loan for the project. The Capitol finds out the City Hall had not yet fulfilled the banking documentary requirements. If that is not sleeping on the job, we do not know what is.Oversleeping, the doctors told us, is not good for the health.

Finally the Top Honcho runs under the skirt of his Environmental Engineer-Consultant. who, among others, wants (as a monumental advice) to close the city of Tagbilaran while the pollution plague devours its innards. With friends like them, who needs enemies for the city?

No excuses, please, just build that waste water treatment facility - can you, Mr. Mayor. Will you ever?

DEMOLITION JOB ON THE MAYOR?

Whenever issues against the City Mayor are brought to the media fore, the mayor who is deathly afraid of not being reelected in 2010 - cries : this is a demolition job. So this next issue will not be an exception.

In a move interpreted to hold a sword of Damocles over 70% of the city's business firms, the City Hall has not issued renewal permits to them. This leaves them patently open to shakedown and harassments whenever these 70% firms run afoul with the mayor and his favored business cronies or allies.

This is a shameful malady that is uniquely strange for a city -once a Dream City turning into a huge Nightmare- courtesy of a warped governance methodology of a twisted City Mayor. A class suit is burgeoning which should land on the laps of the DILG, the Ombudsman or Malacanang itself. This is a clear violation of the Local Government Code.

Even the Capitol has not been spared. It is now feeling the unorthodox taxation methods of City Hall, particularly City Ordinance RC-001which in effect denies Business Permit to Operate for lessees in the Capitol unless the latter pays the lessor's fee, deemed an ultra vires act, according to the governor himself.

The Governor asked Vice Governor Julius Herrera to have this "illegal act" deleted since a city local ordinance is always subordinate to a national statute or law. He hinted that failure to do so could result in the operators at Capitol to leave their premises with budget impact on the coffers of the provincial government.

Internet cafes too, reportedly, have also not been issued renewal licenses, in the flimsy excuse that they lure students out of their classrooms. This is an oppressive class act of governance because bars, cafes, moviehouses, malls (likewise) do lure kids out of the campus as well. -if they want to.It is no different from the billiard halls in certain cities(like Dumaguete City) that once upon a time attracted even law students then (out of their classrooms) when it was in top vogue.

Do we therefore ban motorcycles from the streets because we may die riding on them?

Do we ban cigarettes because they are a hazard to one's health?We are just told they are dangerous to our lives and limbs-period.

The situation at hand. therefore, is unfair to internet cafes -especially because internet itself is a beneficial global information highway that is the object of many students' researches today. City Hall has turned anti-deluvian in its policies, it seems.

As for not giving renewals to 70% of the city's business firms- this is an apparent blackmail on firms to toe the City Mayor's line -or else. If not that, then tax harassment. A Nightmare of a city, indeed.

The City business men are angry -and will soon act.

So, the Media does not actually need to do a Demolition Job on the City Mayor- because he is already doing a good job at it himself.

Shooting himself in the foot is now his new hobby-congratulations!

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