LA TRINIDAD, Benguet – Mayor Romeo K. Salda said that the ongoing rehabilitation and improvement of the municipal hall will be fully completed by 2020 as funds for the project will be sourced out from the savings of the municipal government.
Salda disclosed that the total amount needed to complete the municipal hall rehabilitation project is around P150 million where the appropriated funds had been spread over 4 years through the so-called multi-year obligation primarily because it is the municipal government that solely financed the project.
Of the aforesaid project cost, some P36 million was provided in the 2019 annual budget of the municipal government, another P26 million was incorporated in the 2020 budget, another P40 million was included as a part of the 2021 budget while the remaining balance will be sourced out from savings that will be realized by the municipality in the coming years.
The municipal chief executive pointed out the importance of the timely implementation of the project because of the increasing number of staff of the municipal government, coupled with the rapid increase in the clients of the different offices, so more spaces are needed for clients to transact business, especially during the prevailing Corona Virus Disease (COVID) 2019 pandemic where physical distancing among people is mandatory.
He stated that the implementation of the initial funds infused by the municipal government is right on track so the offices that will be accommodated in the structures that will be completed can transfer to their new offices soonest to allow the other portions of the structure to be improved.
Mayor Salda appealed to the people transacting businesses with the different offices who are encountering inconveniences to bear with the prevailing situation because the temporary inconvenience caused by the ongoing rehabilitation project.
He emphasized that any savings that will be realized by the municipal government from the 2020 budget will be infused to ensure the completion of the municipal hall rehabilitation project on or before the targeted period.
Initially, the municipal government completed the town’s senior citizens building, municipal disaster risk reduction and management building, and the structure for the municipal tourism office which are now being maximized for the delivery of the needed services to their respective clients.
Salda claimed the municipal government will have to make do with the limited available spaces in the structures that will be built for the concerned sectors so that the officials and personnel can serve needs of their clients with utmost satisfaction pursuant to the mandate of the government of rendering basic services with ease and without unnecessary delays.
La Trinidad is the center of trade and commerce in the province being its capital town and the host to numerous regional and provincial offices of government agencies.
By Hent
