A P42.39-million wastewater project in Cebu City sparks tension as Mayor Raymond Alvin Garcia claims it, while former Mayor Michael Rama and Councilor Nestor Archival insist it was years in the making.
CEBU CITY, Philippines — A brewing political storm has erupted in Cebu City as former Mayor Michael Rama and Councilor Nestor Archival lambasted Mayor Raymond Alvin Garcia for allegedly claiming full credit for the P42.39-million Kalunasan Wastewater Treatment project, a facility they insist was already in the works long before Garcia’s administration.
Garcia, who led the ceremonial groundbreaking on February 13, described the project as a long-overdue solution to persistent sanitation issues stemming from untreated wastewater from the Cebu City Jail, the Cebu Provincial Detention and Rehabilitation Center (CPDRC), and the Operation Second Chance facility.
“Nag-sige ko’g tan-aw, buhat ang pasultihon, dili sulti ang pabuhaton. Mao nay thrust sa akong administrasyon—less talk, more action, and more results,” Garcia said.
He added, “This project is long overdue. Nothing happened when I was a city councilor, vice mayor, and now mayor. But God has plans, and now, after being installed as mayor eight months ago, we are finally here.”
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Rama: ‘Ipa-angkon nalang niya tanan’
However, Rama did not hold back, accusing Garcia of deception and dishonesty.
“Ipaangkon nalang na niya tanan, mura man siyag nakaangkon og administrasyon nga fake man siya nga mayor. Tanan ipaangkon,” Rama told CDN Digital on February 14.
“Ipaangkon niya tanan. Ah kuyawa ana niya, ipaangkon niya. Kapoy deal og tawo nga mentally dishonest. Ipaangkon nalang niya tanan. Pangutan-a si Nestor Archival kay naa miy budget ana, project na kaniadto sa konseho. Hambogero naman na siya [Garcia],” Rama said.
Rama insisted that the wastewater treatment project funding was secured during his tenure and accused Garcia of opportunistically taking credit for work that his predecessors had already laid out.
Years of complaints, investigations, and inaction
The long-standing sanitation crisis in Barangay Kalunasan dates back to at least 2015 when Kalunasan residents and mass goers near the Langub Shrine in Barangay Guadalupe complained about the unbearable stench from untreated sewage discharged by the Cebu City Jail and the Cebu Provincial Detention and Rehabilitation Center (CPDRC).
In a CDN Digital report from 2019, lawyer Eugene Orbita, representing affected residents, filed a complaint with the Cebu City Council, alleging that wastewater from the jails was contaminating Kalunasan Creek.
This prompted Governor Gwendolyn Garcia to order an investigation by the Provincial Engineering Office (PEO) to determine whether the CPDRC or the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP) was responsible.
The CPDRC is managed by the Capitol, while the BJMP operates the Cebu City Jail.
In August 2019, the Cebu City Council declared Barangay Kalunasan under a state of calamity due to the recurring sewage crisis, allowing the city to allocate P19.5 million from disaster funds to address the situation.
Immediate interventions included purchasing two vacuum trucks, each costing P8.44 million and declogging the septic tanks at the jails at least twice a week for four months.
The City Council also formed a task force, chaired by Councilor Nestor Archival, to propose both short-term and long-term solutions. However, despite these efforts, the crisis persisted.
Archival: ‘Dili na iya, dugay nana nga proyekto’
Meanwhile, in a separate interview, Councilor Nestor Archival, an early proponent of the wastewater treatment project, backed Rama’s assertions and laid bare a series of bureaucratic missteps that stalled the project for years.
“Ang wastewater facility, kahibaw ta nga there was a disaster sauna. In fact, naa nay resolution declaring it a disaster area tungod sa baho ug contamination sa tubig. Si former city legal officer Eugene Orbita gyud ang ni-reklamo ani sauna,” Archival recounted.
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Archival revealed that he authored a resolution tackling the sanitation crisis, leading to the formation of a committee headed by Councilor Francis Esparis. However, mismanagement and delays in crafting the project’s terms of reference slowed progress to a crawl.
“Ang paghimo sa project kuti kay ang city hall ang naghimo sa terms and reference, which is sakto kay kita man ang mogasto. Pero ang nahitabo, ang pondo nga P50 million sa sinugdanan nawala. Nahimo nang P100 million, pero naproblema pagbalik kay ang laing P50 million kay nawagtang napod,” Archival revealed.
He pointed out that poor record-keeping and a high turnover of department heads led to crucial documents being misplaced, further delaying the Kalunasan wastewater treatment project.
“Walay proper storing ug turn-over sa mga dokumento, mao nga magbalik-balik lang ang proseso. Usa na ka dakong problema sa city hall,” he added.
Who deserves the credit?
Both Rama and Archival insisted that the true architects of the wastewater treatment project were the previous administrations, slamming Garcia for allegedly whitewashing history and conveniently erasing the efforts of those who fought for the project’s realization.
“Ang naghimo gyud ana, ako ug si Mike Rama. Finding the budget, during the time of Mike Rama kay ako may proponent ana. Karon, dawat siya’g limpyo unya angkunon niya ang project,” Archival asserted.
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