Osmeña urges council to reject CBRT project realignment

Local

THE debate over the future of the Cebu Bus Rapid Transit (CBRT) has taken another turn.

This, after Vice Mayor Tomas Osmeña on Wednesday, July 1, urged the Cebu City Council to reject the proposed project realignment outright instead of merely asking the Department of Transportation (DOTr) to do so.

Arguing that the city government has the authority to decide on the matter, Osmeña sought to amend his own proposed resolution to make the rejection the official position of the Cebu City Council.

"We're not asking the DOTr to reject. We are doing the rejection," Osmeña said during the council's regular session.

He said the distinction carries legal significance.

"If the city disapproves of the alignment, the DOTr cannot override it," he added.

He explained that simply urging the national government to reject the proposal could still leave the door open for its implementation.

Osmeña originally filed a resolution urging the DOTr to reject the proposed realignment and restore the project's original Bulacao-to-Talamban alignment.

However, during deliberations, he moved to remove the phrase asking the DOTr to act and instead have the council itself formally reject the revised alignment.

According to Osmeña, the amendment would strengthen the city's position on a project that was originally conceived as a mass transit system connecting the northern and southern parts of Cebu City.

Defending his position, Osmeña reiterated his belief that the proposed SRP alignment departs from the CBRT's original purpose.

"We are rejecting the alignment, period. And we want Bulacao and Talamban to be included because what has transpired here is that SM and Ayala have hijacked the project against the interest of the urban poor," he said.

Councilor Joel Garganera Alcover later asked that Osmeña's statement referring to Ayala be stricken from the official minutes of the session.

The proposed amendment drew mixed reactions from members of the council.

Majority Floor Leader Dave Tumulak argued that the council had already adopted an earlier resolution calling on the Office of the President and the World Bank to review the realignment and restore the original route.

For Tumulak, Osmeña's latest proposal largely reiterated the council's previous position.

"This reiterates the position already embodied in Resolution No. 17-3273-2026," he said.

But several councilors disagreed, saying the two measures addressed different issues.

Councilor Sisinio Andales pointed out that the earlier resolution merely appealed to national authorities, while Osmeña's proposal sought to make the rejection the official stand of the Cebu City Council.

"There is no conflict there. The present resolution is different and distinct," Andales said.

Presiding Officer Philip Zafra shared the same view, saying the previous resolution only sought reconsideration of the revised alignment, while Osmeña's measure would categorically reject it.

Transportation Committee Chairman Winston Pepito said no member of the council was opposing the original Bulacao-to-Talamban corridor.

Instead, he said the proposed SRP segment was intended to complement the project and stimulate economic activity in the city's southern district.

"I fully agree that the original BRT route is important and should be implemented in full," Pepito said.

He explained that construction toward Talamban and Bulacao involves more complicated engineering work, which is why the SRP component was prioritized for implementation.

"No one in the council is against the original route," he added.

Rather than immediately deciding on the resolution, Councilor Mikel Rama proposed inviting the DOTr and other stakeholders to explain the rationale behind the realignment.

He said the original Bulacao-Talamban route and the proposed SRP alignment "are not mutually exclusive," and that the council should first hear the agency's commitments before adopting a final position.

The suggestion was accepted by the council.

Following a brief recess, council members agreed to hold a special session on Friday, where representatives from the DOTr will be invited to present and justify the proposed CBRT realignment before deliberations on Osmeña's resolution continue.

The latest debate comes days after the City Council withdrew a committee report endorsing further discussions on the proposed SRP component.(TGP)