Mayor Belen to critics: Don’t underestimate Dagupenos

By Mortz C. Ortigoza

DAGUPAN CITY – The mayor here rebutted the propagandas heaped against her administration by critics in the media for not hiring consultants from the University of the Philippines.

Dagupan City Mayor Belen Fernandez with city officials
in a motorcade recently for a phenomenal performances of
the city athletes in the just concluded Region1 Atheletic
Association Meet.

"Bakit, inunderestimate mo? Hinde ba magaling ang city planning natin? Hinde ba magaling ang mayor natin? Hinde  ba magaling ang engineer natin? Doon sa U.P Planades, gumastos tayo ng two million pesos, anong ginamit natin doon? Wala!" declared by Mayor Belen T.  Fernandez.
She said the reason why she did not hire the service of technical experts of the University of the Philippines’ Planning and Development Research Foundation, Inc. (UP PLANADES) was first, the city government has the capacity to do the planning like the Comprehensive  Land Used Plan (CLUP); second, the two million pesos spent on the technicians from U.P by the former Mayor Benjie S. Lim administration could wisely be used to amortize the hundreds of millions of pesos loaned by the previous administration.

PLANADES is a non-stock, non-profit foundation engaged in research, consultancy and extension services, academic development and training in environmental, urban and regional planning and related disciplines.

Fernandez cited the advice of UP Planades that during the stint of her predecessor that this city should have a Class A gymnasium.

“Wala, kasi doon sa UP Planades nakalagay pala doon, sa 2030 dapat ang  Dagupan ay magkakaroon ng Class A gymnasium. I pinatayo ko na e, five years ago.  Hinde na ako umabot ng 2030.  Stadia ay world class,” she cited the mammoth gymnasium her family built and owned here.

In the 2016 budget, the mayor cited, this city’s old air-conditioned astrodome had been given several million pesos appropriation for its repair.

She said that people should not depend on the government on projects like construction of huge buildings that entails tens of millions of pesos.

The funds, the mayor cited, should be best allocated to social services to the poor, dredging of rivers, building dikes to prevent the perennial flooding that haunt this city, and others.

“Ang ibig sabihin noon hinde tayo lahat puwedeng mag depende sa government. Kailangan ang mga investors hayaan natin silang nag expand”.

The mayor said however that three years ago her family wanted to invest for a world class hotel in Barangay Lucao but was undermined by former Mayor Lim.

“Three years ago I and my family were geared to build a swanky hotel. But what happened? The Lim Administration did not give me the business permit to build it,” the mayor stressed to Northern Watch.

 “Sino pa ang mga presidents ng mga national organizations that should be coming in Dagupan but instead preferred Iloilo, Cebu, and other cities because our city could not accommodate their volume, “she cited.

The mayor also lashed at her detractors why they bellyached on the ten million pesos included in the 2016 city budget she intended for back filling of a low level area.

That fund, she cited, is a preparation from the pledged of Congresswoman Gina de Venecia that  she will look for funds in Manila for the construction of the new city hall.

“Hinde naman puwedeng pagka sabi ni Manay may pondo  ka na sa city hall kung saan ka kukuha panambak. Ang plano natin advance tayo”.