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Thursday, June 30, 2005
Espinoza: Clash over Capitol contracts continues
By Elias L. Espinoza
BUDGET. While the national leadership is experiencing a credibility crisis, the Cebu Provincial Board (PB) and the Office of the Governor continued their clash over certain contracts.
After two months of deliberations, the PB approved this year’s supplemental budget, which is P62 million lower than what was originally proposed. Some Capitol legislators consider the move a mockery of their budget.
The controversial allocation of P3 million for janitorial services and P3.3 million for security services were reduced to P1,000 each. Efforts of PB Member Victor Maambong to retain the original allocations failed to convince the majority.
PB Member Luigi Quisumbing, chairman of the committee on budget, clarified that they did not intend to mock. Reducing a certain allocation to P1,000 is a “practice” of budgetary actions, even in the national budget, Quisumbing said.
The majority bloc instituted an action before the Office of the Ombudsman, questioning the legality of “prior authorization” that the governor’s office used in signing the janitorial and security contracts without the review of the PB.
While other allocations were reduced to P1,000, Capitol workers have every reason to smile now since they will receive their P3,000 love bonus soon.
I strongly feel that, until the legal issue on contracts signed by the governor without PB authority is resolved, the delivery of basic services will be jeopardized since the political skirmish will continue.
However, the Office of the Governor only raised suspicions of irregularity when it insisted that the approval of the budget for certain items is already considered “prior authorization.”
In my humble knowledge of the law, all contracts that a city or town executive enters into always need the authorization from the council. After a contract is signed, it goes back to the council for its conformity.
I don’t see any difference in the way the Office of the Governor and the Office of the City Mayor perform their respective functions. Even if the opposition did not raise the issue of corruption, still they created doubts in the public’s mind.
SPREAD. Vigilante-style killings in Cebu City have spread to the neighboring Talisay City.
No matter how my good friend, Talisay City Police Chief Audie Villacin, would explain to us that the killing of Wennie Deiparine was drug-related, most of us think otherwise. Deiparine was reportedly in the PNP drug list.
There is only one person I know who can tell us whether the death of Deiparine was the handiwork of vigilantes. Until this person confirms it on radio, we can only speculate.
Deiparine’s killing was apparently patterned after the cold-blooded murders in Cebu City that have been tolerated by police and local officials, for reasons known only to them.
Eliminating criminal elements is not the appropriate remedy to the rising crime rate. It is a desperate move and it only breeds criminality.
The killings may have reduced the incidence of robbery or theft, but the number of unsolved crimes continues to increase.
(June 30, 2005 issue)
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