About 1,300 participants from the towns of Leyte, Bohol and North Cotabato are scheduled to arrive and stay at the City Central School in Cebu City from Jan. 17 to 22 or the day after the Sinulog Grand Parade.
But City Central School principal Lyra Illaga said yesterday that they have yet to complete accommodations for the out-of-town contingents.
“The city government’s maintenance staff need to empty our four septic tanks because they will be filled up by more than a thousand occupants,” she said.
Illaga said the maintenance staff’s visit yesterday morning was late considering that preparations for the accommodations of the out-of-town contingents are done as early as December.
“We’re done with the cleaning of rooms; what is not prepared, as we feel this time, is the counterpart of the (Sinulog) Foundation. We feel there’s lacking for our school,” she said.
Leyte’s Abuyog town contingent was scheduled to be billeted last night.
“We need to have standby electricians and plumbers to ensure stable supply and clean toilets,” Illaga said.
She said the school’s maintenance and other operating expenses (MOOE) budget didn’t include preparations for the accommodations of the out-of-town contingents.
“We have four utility workers, but their work actually does not include the days when we accommodate contingents who generate a lot of wastes,” Illaga said.
Sinulog Execom Chairman Dave Tumulak admitted they sent a maintenance staff late as “there are some other concerns” they need to attend to.
“We’re not only serving their school but the whole Cebu City, so they have to understand also because we’re not robots,” Tumulak said.
Tumulak said the school could tap its MOOE or inform the Department of Education (DepEd) about its concerns in accommodating contingents.
For safety considerations, classes are suspended for the City Central School’s 4,200 students, starting Wednesday, January 17 until Monday, Jan. 22.
“We will replace Saturday classes for the days the classes are suspended. It will be on Jan. 27 and Feb. 3 and 10,” Illaga said. /Contributor Keith Anthony S. Fabro, Palawan News