Pesina, Firmeza tussle may open can of worms
Pesina.
The exchanges between City Councilor Antonio Pesina, chair of the committee on urban poor, human rights and minority group, and the chair of the Iloilo City Urban Poor Affairs Office (Icupao), Roy Firmeza, may open a can of worms pertaining to the city's relocation sites which have long been suspected of irregularities.
This after the legislative body in its regular session last Wednesday approved a resolution requiring Icupao chair Roy Firmeza to appear before the council and shed light on the alleged bribe attempt on Councilor Pesina.
The resolution also seeks answers on the continuous refusal of the Icupao to provide the city council the master list of the beneficiaries in the different relocation sites and their corresponding documents.
The unresolved issue on the awarding of home lots to beneficiaries in different relocation sites sparked after three urban poor groups, namely, Iloilo City Urban Poor Federation Inc; KABALAKA/Homeless Peoples Federation of the Philippines Inc and Iloilo Federation of Community called for the resignation of Councilor Pesina for his inefficiency and inaction on the concerns and issues particularly on the repayment scheme of the beneficiaries of the relocation sites.
The group sent a manifesto to the members of the legislative body asking to recall Pesina and the composition of the entire committee for loss of confidence. The letter prompted Pesina to deliver a privilege speech in last Wednesday's regular session of the Sangguniang Panlungsod.
Instead of confronting the groups that called for his resignation, Pesina vented his ire on Firmeza. Though, he made a short statement regarding the personality of the group behind the call to remove him.
Pesina said he does not know Benfred Tacuyan, president of the Iloilo City Urban Poor Federation Inc; Belen Peñaflor, president of the KABALAKA/Homeless Peoples Federation of the Philippines Inc. and Paterno Licuran, president of the Iloilo Federation of Community.
In his privilege speech, Pesina accused Firmeza of attempting to bribe him of P50,000 to facilitate and approve the land deal between the city government and the property owner Rogelio Tarrosa. The 1.6 hectares Tarrosa property at Barangay Lanit, Jaro is being sold for P150 per square meter.
Pesina said the alleged bribe attempt happened sometime last month inside the Bluejay Coffee & Deli at General Luna corner Jalandoni Streets. He could not remember the exact date on when the bribe attempt was made. During the session, he even made a joke asking Firmeza to increase the bribe offer from P50,000 to P100,000.
"Firmeza acted as a broker between the owner and the city government. He is a city official and he must have exercised "delicadeza." He should not interfere in the land deal alone. There should be a committee authorized by the mayor to take care of the negotiation," said Pesina
When asked why he only came out with said allegation against Firmeza now that there is an issue against him Pesina said, "I was only waiting for the right time".
Pesina said he is planning to have Firmeza entrapped by the members of the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) as soon as he delivers the money in exchange of the favorable endorsement for sale of the Tarrosa property. It did not happen.
The councilor said he is willing to execute an affidavit before the Ombudsman to prove his point on the alleged bribe attempt of Firmeza.
Further, the councilor said actions have already been initiated by his committee regarding the repayment schemes for three relocation sites, namely, San Isidro in Lapaz, Bitoon in Jaro and South Fundidor in Molo.
In the 2007 meeting with the committee and the beneficiaries, the initial repayment scheme presented before them is P135 per month for a 60 square meters homelot. The term of payment is 10 years, he said.
Pesina said the repayment scheme was delayed after he requested Firmeza to submit the master list of the qualified beneficiaries and their corresponding documents before the conduct of the geodetic survey. The geodetic survey will determine the boundaries of the awarded home lots.
However, until now Firmeza has yet to submit the pre-requisite documents of the qualified beneficiaries. The corresponding documents will include a demand letter from the property where the beneficiaries used to occupy and demand letter in cases of eviction.
The councilor said a mere list of the beneficiaries without the corresponding documents qualifying them from the city's relocation projects is not a mere guarantee to push the repayment scheme for the council's approval.
The committee could not satisfy the members of the body on the issue of the legal personality of the beneficiaries without the proper documents. The committee could not just present before the members of the council the master list of the beneficiaries without supporting documents, said Pesina.
The councilor also described Firmeza a "bad egg" in the administration of Mayor Jerry Treñas, thus he must be replaced. He is only destroying the image of the mayor, Pesina said.