If Rama Permits, LDRRC May Clarify P202.1M Expenses

Mayor Michael Rama may allow the heads of the Local Disaster Risk Reduction Council (LDRRC) to appear before the Cebu City Council during its regular session on Wednesday to answer questions from the city legislators, but advised them that if they will be scolded by the councilors they can walk out.

The Cebu City Council had already invited Cathy Yso and Alvin Santillana, head and operations officer of the City Disaster Risk Reduction Council, respectively, to appear before them in order to clarify certain issues and to brief the city legislators about their proposed P202.1 million expenses for this year.

Among the topics to be discussed during the session is the recommendation of the Bids and Awards Committee (BAC) to authorize the mayor to open a Letter of Credit with the Land Bank of the Philippines in favor of Kaiser Ag Fahrzeugwerk for the purchase of a P20.5 million multi-function walking excavator.

Santillana said he will first ask permission from the mayor whether he will be allowed to appear before the City Council. “Tan-awa kuno kon ready ba si Alvin nga makig-atubang didto nga dili kasab-an. Kon kasab-an gani, hala palakta dayon,” the mayor told City Administrator Jose Marie Poblete.

The mayor told Poblete to brief Santillana of how he will answer questions from the city legislators and to find out what the City Council would want to know. “Kon kasab-an ra gani ayaw paadtoa,” said said.

According to the mayor some of his department heads had already experienced being berated by the city councilors after they attended the City Council.

“Depende man kon ang ila is an inquiry just for them to be fully guided to help, then go. But kon ang invitation nila is just to embarass, walk out dayon. Imagine, fear is already being done done before and I don’t want that to happpen again. Ako may mabasul ana nga akong gilawog ang akong mga tawo sa tirong,” Rama said.

The “walking excavator” that the Cebu City government would want to buy shall be used to dredge the rivers and creeks. The equipment is called walking excavator because it is looks like a spider that has legs and it can move on.