This is our second to the last piece before we take the usual 45-day leave of absence in view of our re-election bid as city councilor. The last would be on Wednesday.
We shall resume writing, God willing, on May 16, also a Wednesday.

The Awardee Team Tagbilaran would be filing the certificates of candidacy also on Wednesday.

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Speaking of the Awardee Team Tagbilaran, the complete slate is led by re-electionist City Mayor Dan Neri Lim who has been anointed as the official administration coalition candidate.

His running mate is re-electionist City Vice-Mayor Nuevas T. Montes. For city councilors are five incumbents. They are City Councilors Oscar B. Glovasa, George R. Olario, Edgar Bompat, Edgar Kapirig and yours truly.

The other candidates are newcomers whose names are no longer new to the city electorates. They are businessman Zenaido "Djingo" Rama, former IBP Pres. Florendo "Tata" Columnas, Atty. Nerio "Butchie" Zamora II, Punong Barangay Faro Cabalit of Taloto and Punong Barangay Elvira "Elvie" Macalandag of Dampas.

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With the proximity of the March 29 deadline, it was of no surprise when the some of the city sanggunian members voted on partisan lines last Wednesday the resolution ratifying the contract for the rehabilitation of the mothballed Agora Public Market which has been hibernating for 15 long years.

The unity displayed by the SP members, which merited its recognition as an Outstanding Sangguniang Panlungsod for Component Cities, was gone.

Seven city councilors voted in favor of the resolution. They are City Councilors Urbano Lagunay, Edi Borja and the five city councilors belonging to the Awardee Team Tagbilaran. City Councilors Jose Antonio Veloso, Arcadio Sarmiento and Alberta Torralba voted against the measure while City Councilors Lucio Balbin and Frances Marnelle Abellana abstained.

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In October last year, the city council unanimously passed a resolution authorizing the city mayor to proceed with the completion of the Agora market through the modes provided for by law.

A month later, the invitation to bid for the rehabilitate-operate-transfer scheme was published in a newspaper of national circulation. The bidding was conducted last December and the award was made to the lone proponent within the same month.

Negotiations followed early this year. The city council again passed a resolution authorizing the city mayor to enter into a contract with the lone proponent for the completion of the Agora, which contract is subject to ratification. What was voted last Wednesday was on the ratification of the contract.

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Among the salient features of the contract between the city government and the project proponent is that the latter, at no cost to the city, will pour in at least P60 million to rehabilitate the Agora within a maximum period of ten months.

Once it is fully rehabilitated, the project proponent will start paying rent to the city government with a guaranteed rental of P5 million per year or, at the option of the city, 20% of the total revenues generated from rental receipts, whichever is higher.

The contract has a term of 25 years and is governed by the existing laws on rehabilitate-operate-transfer scheme.

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