Some aimless city council resolutions

To my surprise, I received few unexpected reactions to my Thursday column on the resolution of Hon Alvin Dizon, member of the Cebu City Sangguniang Panlungsod, urging Congress to conduct a legislative investigation to focus on the demolition of some houses at Sitio San Miguel, Barangay Apas, this city. I thought that my article was more of a fatherly advice to a city councilor who has my gratitude than a spanking for a wayward resolution.  It must have touched some sensitive nerves or otherwise my article would not have merited such feedbacks.

Those reactions, are, by themselves, a great study of contrasting public opinions, serving at the same time, as timely reminders for me to attempt to achieve balance and objectivity in my writings. In their articulate prose, for which reason I hereby break my self-imposed rule not to react to letters, they showed to me that many of us, Cebuanos mind what our leaders do such that our officials, conversely have to endeavor to meet our high expectations.

One reaction, for example, cautioned me against criticizing  the councilor because, according to him, Hon. Dizon, continues to register as sponsor of among the highest number of resolutions passed by the city council. In all candidness, it was a valid statement. For the months of January and February 2014, the councilor filed with the council secretary a total of 15 proposed resolutions that eventually got the nod of his colleagues.

The records at the office of the secretary of the sanggunian is the best source of information. Those 15 resolutions filed by Hon. Dizon consisted of: (first) ten (10) measures requesting or encouraging certain government offices or private enterprise, to do this or that something; (second) expressing support to undertakings of government agencies or private individuals and (third) urging certain offices to carry out certain actions.

An example of a "requesting" resolution was that which Hon. Dizon filed for the city council session of January 22, 2014. In that measure, the honorable councilor requested the National Housing Authority and the city's Division for the Welfare of the Urban Poor to consult and include the Lorega Barangay Council in their activities.

On the other hand, the councilor filed with the SP secretary for its February 12 session, an example of the second type of resolution. In that measure, he wanted the city council to express "support" to House Bill No. 656. For his third type of resolution, Hon. Dizon filed on February 26, his proposed resolution "urging the HLURB" to issue a memorandum to all Homeowners Associations to do certain act.

Sponsoring fifteen resolutions in two months is indicative of a great amount of effort. This number must have been the crux of the reactor's position to make the councilor the apple of his eye. Judging by that number alone, we, as the reactor probably was, could very well assume that the councilor is more than efficient such that he deserves his pay. He spent a good deal of time researching those issues and preparing himself to advance such topics on the session hall.

Unfortunately, those numbers do not translate into good legislation. In fact, they were not legislative measures that we expect the city council would churn. In the first example of a "requesting" resolution given above, Hon. Dizon, did not do anything substantive. He only asked NHA to do something, a work, to NHA. In short, he just passed a work to an agency. If people consider that accomplishment, then I do not know the meaning of the word accomplishment.

If only the good councilor studied very carefully these measures before he filed them with the city council, he probably would have been prevailed upon by his conscience not to waste the city council's time discussing something that did not exist within the realm of local legislation. What he worked on were aimless and useless resolutions.

An ordinance is a local law. Passing an ordinance is passing a law. Urging someone to do something, or requesting somebody to take an action or supporting a body in any of its effort falls short of my concept of local legislation. I pray really that Hon. Alvin Dizon shall consider the idea that in local legislation it is any substantive matter that regulates or promotes an act for an undefined future time that matters. In other words, quality not quantity counts.  .