Some city scholars barred from entering condo

CEBU CITY CONDOMINIUM (CDN FILE PHOTO)

Cebu City Mayor Tomas Osmeña said yesterday the city’s scholars are required to submit an endorsement letter before they could enter the city’s dormitory.

Some scholars from the mountain barangays sought the help of Vice Mayor Edgardo Labella after they were barred from entering the dormitory on N. Bacalso Avenue, Barangay Sambag 1.

The city’s scholars, accompanied by the barangay captains of Sudlon I and Buot, went to the vice mayor’s office yesterday morning to ask for help.

Under Section 2 of City Ordinance No. 2174, “Only students from the mountain barangays are allowed to stay in the Cebu City Dormitory.”

One of the students, Ricardo Cabrera, a third year BS Criminology student, claimed that his gate pass was taken by the guard when he went out from the dormitory.

“Ana man siya (guard) nga iya daw’ng kuhaon akong ID kay ilisan og bag-o (The guard said he would get my ID as this would be replaced with a new one),” Cabrera said.

Like Cabrera, the students claimed that they were not allowed to enter in the dormitory unless they could submit an endorsement. “Dili man ihatag og balik ang ID kun dili makakompleto ang requirements (Our IDs would not be returned not unless all requirements are completed,” Cabrera said.

Cabrera, who hails from Barangay Buot, said the endorsement is just one of the requirements. Others are the student’s study load, tuition assessment, and barangay clearance certifying their residency in the mountain barangay.

Some students from Barangay Sudlon I were able to get an endorsement from barangay captain Dante Tabucal and tried to submit it to the dormitory’s executive director only to be told that it was unacceptable.

“They were supposed to get endorsements from my people in the mountain barangays. If they don’t want to get it so they are not interested in coming back (to the city’s condominium),” Osmeña said.

In the letter of Sudlon II barangay captain Rosalita Callino, students from her barangay were instructed by a staff of condominium administrator Nanette Garong to vacate if they could not provide the recommendation from barangay councilor Cabrillos but said that Cabrillos refused because he did not know about the policy and he is not the barangay captain.

Osmeña clarified that the endorsements will not be coming from “BOPK leaders but from his representatives of the barangay.”

A notice was also posted stating that all occupants must be able to provide the endorsement on or before October 1 else they would be refused access to the building.
The city’s scholars also claimed that they were not also permitted entry even if they just wanted to get their personal belongings left in the dormitory.

The city government collects P350 monthly from at least 600 students who are staying at the dormitory.

Osmeña said there is no need to empty the whole dormitory when the rehabilitation starts but some units need to be vacant.

“There is a long list of people who wanted to come in. Why should I give them preference? They were given preference before. The world turns around, okay?” Osmeña said.
Osmeña, however, did not mention the start of the rehabilitation.

He said that the structure needs to be fixed because of the “poor maintenance and abuse.”

He said P20 million will be spent to fix the building and another P5 million in furnishing. The amount will be included in the new budget.

Osmeña also mentioned that he was planning to give P5,000 to students from the mountain barangays. “Scholarship is a high priority for me. The students have to go to college, and those from the mountain barangays, it is more expensive for them.”

He said if he can recover the city’s properties, he has a plan to have a scholarship fund of P50,000 per student, especially those from the mountain barangays. “The alternative is to build colleges in the mountain barangays,” the mayor said.