Rama vetoes sports hub ordinance

By: Jose Santino S. Bunachita December 27,2014 - 06:17 AM

Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama has vetoed the ordinance that earmarks a portion of the South Road Properties (SRP) as a one-stop sports hub.

In his veto message to the City Council which was sent last Monday, Rama said the ordinance is beyond the power of the legislative body and “prejudicial to public welfare.”

“It is within the power of the local chief executive, the city mayor to adopt adequate measures to safeguard the other resources of the city and provide efficient and effective property management with respect to the city’s property, SRP (South Road Properties) in this case,” Rama said.

He cited section 455 of the Local Government Code which delineates the power of the chief executive.

The ordinance, which was sponsored by Councilors Eugenio Gabuya Jr., Mary Ann delos Santos and Hanz Abella, seeks to establish a 10-hectare area in the SRP as a one-stop sports hub of the city.

This area is near the Big Foot Studios and the Philippine Water Resources Inc. (PWRI).

As an alternative, the mayor said in his veto message that the executive department is “very much willing” to at least three hectares to five hectares as long as the traffic problem that would arise from the construction will be addressed.

He said the allocation of 10 hectares is “not feasible” with the SRP’s layout and would cause traffic problems in the future with the present limited access in the area.

“I am not against the establishment of a one-stop sports hub in the South Road Properties. In fact, this is one of my envisioned projects and I commend the Sangguniang Panlungsod which also has the same endeavor in pursuit of upholding youth’s role in nation building and fostering youth’s patriotism and nationalism,” Rama said.