CEBU Gov. Hilario Davide III yesterday said Cebu remains “a premier province” and that when he first ran for the Capitol post in 2010, the province was rocked by fund anomalies over the Cebu International Convention Center and the Balili land purchase.
Davide, responding to the first salvo from opponents in the Garcia camp, said it was misleading to say Cebu’s rank had dropped to no. 3.
He clarified that it was only this year that a new category for provinces was introduced in the “business competitiveness index” which was set up in 2013 to rank cities and municipalities.
Cebu was rated third-most competitive province after Davao del Sur and Misamis Oriental in that survey.
Davide , who is in Japan seeking potential investors and technical assistance , issued this statement:
“When I decided to run for the 2010 elections, the controversial CICC was in the newspapers and in radio commentaries almost daily. An P830-million white elephant, a bare-bones structure costing almost P30,000 per square meter
“In July 2012, the Ombudsman indicted Cebu provincial officials for the anomalous purchase of an un-real estate off the shoreline of Naga for P98 million in 2008.
“Previous to that, in 2004, the Commission on Audit noted in its Audit Report that “several contracts” entered into by the Province were “not supported with a Sangguniang Panlalawigan resolution.
“When the previous governor was suspended, barangay health workers from all over the province were bused to the Capitol so that she may present a façade of people support. They were billeted at a local hotel, food and bed at the expense of taxpayers’ money.
“Perhaps that is the kind of administration they wish to bring back.
“The National Competitiveness Council was established by Executive Order No. 44 in June 2011. Previous to this, it was originally the Public-Private Sector Task Force on Philippine Competitiveness established in October 2006 by virtue of Executive Order No. 571. It was intended to encourage cities and municipalities to upgrade services to attract private investments.
“In 2013, the Council established the Cities and Municipalities Competitiveness Index ranking the LGUs in business competitiveness. It was only this year that the new category for provinces was introduced.
“Cebu remains a premier province, then and now.
“The obvious difference is that there won’t be a CICC, there won’t be a Balili, there won’t be any shortcut to accounting procedures, and there certainly won’t be billeting of political supporters in hotels at the expense of the Province.”
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