For his first 100 days in office, Mayor Rolando Uy here reported Monday that the city government has implemented sustainable “pro-poor” policies, especially to stave off the impacts of the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) pandemic.
Going forward into his three-year terms, Uy said his administration will set a solid roadmap for economic recovery that will define his first term in office.
“My (development) roadmap is clear, ‘Rise CDO’ is not only a list of programs, not just a framework, but it is needed to be attained through actual work,” he said.
Other than economic recovery, Uy said the local government is also moving forward with regional leadership with metropolization, accessibility, and connectivity under the ‘Rise’ agenda.
During the past three months, the mayor said his administration has carried out programs to promote participatory governance, as well as instituted policies on security, safety, and human resource development.
Most of the time, however, Uy said his time and attention to the poor in his first 100 days by bringing basic services to the city’s 80 villages with his “Klarex nga Serbisyo sa Barangay (KSB),” a program reaching out directly to the people with “Kasalan ng Bayan” as an added attraction.
Every Wednesday and Thursday, Uy also entertains the community from different walks of life, dubbed “People’s Day.”
To address the unemployment problem, the city’s employment office has facilitated a job placement of 5,131 residents, he said.
Uy said the initiative reduced the almost double-digit unemployment rate here in 2021, which reached 9.3 percent or around 30,000 unemployed persons, based on data from the Philippine Statistics Authority.
Meanwhile, Uy said he approved a PHP8.2-billion Annual Investment Plan proposed by the City Development Council for 2023.
The local finance committee is set to submit to the City Council the 2023 budget later this month.
The City Council, meanwhile, has started committee deliberations on the proposed fiscal incentives and economic reforms package, which the mayor had certified as urgent.
The measures include the granting of a 20 percent discount to advance payers of 2023 and 2024 real property taxes and a 10 percent discount for those who will file their business and other local taxes on time.
Misamis Oriental Governor Peter Unabia was present during Uy’s report, showing his support amid calls for unity between the provincial government and the city.
“My presence signifies my unity to the city government and always to support whatever programs of the city, because surely it will also benefit my constituents in the province,” the governor said in a media interview. (PNA)