“Political move”
Cong. Chiquiting Sagarbarria slammed as “highly political” the denial of a building permit by the City government of Dumaguete for the construction of the Medical City in barangay Piapi.
The construction ground to a halt last week after the City Engineer ordered the contractor to cease activity because it was in violation of the law.
In an interview with reporters, Mayor Felipe Remollo said the Land Use Plan classifies the area where the eight-storey Medical City will be built as an “Institutional Zone” and should not have buildings higher than three storeys.
He said this is embodied in an Ordinance that was passed when Congressman Sagarbarria was mayor of Dumaguete. “This is not a Remollo ordinance,” he said.
Sagarbarria countered that if the City only allows buildings no taller than three storeys in that area, why did it issue a permit to an 11-storey building nearby? “Why approve one, and block the other? That’s politics!” the Congressman said.
Sagarbarria, who is running for Dumaguete mayor, said he cannot do anything if the current Mayor doesn’t allow the construction of the Medical City because he has the power to decide.
“But this is the first time for me to see that a hospital [construction] will be blocked by an LGU. That [hospital] is for the good of everyone. It took over a year for the papers to be processed because the DOH is strict. Every inch [of the plan] was studied by DOH if it complies with the standard,” Sagarbarria lamented.
“If he is really for the people, that [hospital] should be constructed because it is for the good of the people,” Sagarbarria said. The Medical City will also house a dialysis center.
The Mayor has denied that the refusal of the building permit is politically-motivated. “The City Engineer approved the Locational Clearance and the Building Permit for the new government center” at the Capitol Area. (AP)
