Miffed when the proposed takeover ordinance of the BREDCO port was killed on first reading last week by his colleagues, Bacolod Councilor Lyndon Caña asked during a privilege speech he delivered before the SP yesterday, if the Sangguniang Panlungsod now is an abortion clinic of its own ideas.

Caña said the SP members are the mothers and fathers of Resolution 921 that authorized the minority members to study the takeover and rebidding of the Bacolod port. He asked why they "killed" the ordinance before it was born (or was heard), when the idea came from them.

Over the protest of Councilor Dindo Ramos that a debate was not proper on first reading, Councilor Ana Marie Palermo insisted that she is not for a takeover because she believes that "An evil cannot be corrected by another evil," Caña said.

He asked if they are admitting that the present setup with the Bacolod Real Estate Development Corp. is an evil that cannot be cured with another evil. If it is inherently evil, why did they authorize Resolution 921 last Nov. 2, 2005? He asked.

Caña said because their proposed ordinance was killed on first reading he wants to know what solution the SP could propose, and wants to hear it soon because the "stalemate" is bad for the city.

Caña said he is not against BREDCO president Simplicio Palanca. He has a very high respect for the man and even proposed that a building be put up at the Reclamation Area in his honor and to be called the "Sammy Palanca Center for Government and Business" in his report to the SP dated June 14, 2005, he said.

However, because BREDCO did not comply with the terms and condition of its contract with the city, the SP minority recommended the takeover of the port operation and to rebid it to other private business or investors in the city, he added.

Meanwhile, Caña denied that there is a Korean firm behind him or the minority who proposed the takeover ordinance, or that the matter is made of public record in the SP.

Caña was reacting to a published news item, not in the DAILY STAR, where Councilor Jocelle Batapa-Sigue reportedly said that she does not like the idea that "even before the SP can decide on the matter (BREDCO issue), it is already part of the record of the SP that there are interested bidders." This was contained in her press release dated Mar. 26, where she stated her reason for abstaining during the votation of the takeover ordinance, he said.

Caña said his legal retainer relationship with the Korean firm, Hanjin Heavy Industries ended by mutual agreement in December 2005.

On Tuesday, Hanjin issued a certification that it does not know or is not aware of, and is not interested in the reclamation project, port or port operation in the Reclamation Area, Caña said.

Batapa-Sigue yesterday apologized, saying she believes that her biggest fault is the fact that she is really naïve. "As I mark my second year in government this June, I have not until now realized that every stand we take will be given a color," she said, adding that she is not a politician by blood. She said she had no intention to cast any aspersion or ill-will against Caña, she added.*CGS

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