The pronouncement of Dumaguete Mayor Manuel Sagarbarria, that he is against the color-coding scheme for motorcabs for hire in the city, pre-empted the outcome of Tuesday’s public consultation on the proposed ordinance on alternate day traffic scheme, Vice Mayor Alan Gel Cordova said.

Cordova issued the statement, after majority of the drivers and operators expressed opposition to the proposal authored by Cordova and Sangguniang Panlungsod councilors Dan Leon, Erwin Macias, JV Imbo, and Franklin Esmena Jr.

Sagarbarria said he will veto the measure if ever the SP pushes through with it, despite the vehement objection of the tricycle drivers and operators.

But Cordova said it was improper of the mayor to say so, adding that Sagarbarria should let the SP do its job and go through the process of deliberating on proposed legislations.

He added that the city will not grow if new ideas are immediately killed, with Sagarbarria issuing preemptive pronouncements. Cordova said that if the SP members are afraid of the repercussion of the traffic proposal on their political career, they would not have touched the issue.

But the proposal was made because there is a need to find ways and solution to the traffic problem in the city while improving the income of tricycle drivers, Cordova said.

He also said that, as early as December, he had suggested the conduct of a survey or send questionnaires to drivers and operators so the proposed ordinance will be based on statistics and numbers. “Unfortunately, this was not undertaken, so the public hearing was lopsided,” Cordova said.

Consumer advocate Joel Obar, meanwhile, said it is natural for tricycle drivers to deny that they are the ones congesting the streets, because a lot of private vehicles, delivery trucks, and motorcycles are also allowed entry to the city.

However, he said, if everybody is gathered in a workshop to discuss, debate, and deliberate on the issue, a solution or compromise agreement can be reached, unlike when only drivers and operators are gathered. “It is a natural consequence to be biased for their good.”

Obar said he is in favor of the solution offered by Land Transportation Office chief Roland Ramos to free Real Street from motorcabs for hire; and to create zones, where half of the tricycles are allowed entry to the commercial district and the other, to the outskirts of Dumaguete, and vice versa.*JG

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