Report bares call for recall of guv's authority on P350-M loan
The planned construction of a P350 million convention center by the Iloilo Provincial Government faces recall.
Recall, that is, for three Resolutions that gave Governor Niel Tupas the earlier nod to pursue the multi-million project.
In a 60-paged report of the Iloilo Sanggunian Panlalawigan's (SP) Committee of the Whole, the Committee summed up its recommendations on the recall of Resolutions 2007-057, 2007-053 and 2007-058.
Yet until Third District Board Member Arthur Defensor Jr. Committee Chairman officially presents said report before the SP body, the recommendations remain as such – mere recommendations.
The yet to be official SP stand stated further that the convention center set to be funded by a new loan "is a blatant violation" of a government policy.
"… it is not in the Province's local development plan and public investment program. It is not sound financing planning as it is not planned in terms of expected results because the Feasibility Study is wanting in all respects," excerpts of the committee report as obtained by The News Today (TNT) went.
About a two-inched thick set of documents formed part of the committee report's annexes. This, alongside a detailed disclosures and discussions of the statements gathered from resource persons in and out of government service.
"According to NEDA (National Economic Development Authority), there is a need for a more detailed feasibility study of the Project in all its aspects," the report continued. "The unavoidable conclusion is that, the Feasibility Study is not a feasibility study at all. At best, it only relies on the fact that the Province has capacity to pay the loan because of its IRA (Internal Revenue Allotment) which comprises 79.25% of its total revenues."
More issues against the project's Feasibility Study still particularly on how it supposedly failed to show that the project will finance itself.
The now all-too important Feasibility Study was courtesy of Capitol financial advisor to the Governor, businessman David Buenavacz.
"The Feasibility Study does not guarantee that the Project will be economically viable as to relieve the Province of its debt burden," the report stated. "If the viability of the Project is not certain, it becomes a gamble and at stake is the economy of the Province."