Written by Pat C. Santos
Tuesday, 19 June 2012 00:00 [ tribune.net.ph ]
Manila Mayor Alfredo Lim yesterday
thanked the thousands of city employees for their support by rendering the best service they could give
the residents and those transacting business in City Hall.
Lim made the pronouncement as
employees from the Manila City Hall’s various departments, bureaus and offices
yesterday showcased their talents during a parade held as part of kick-off
activities for the city’s 441st founding anniversary on June 24.
The parade, spearheaded by Lim himself
as well as key officials led by secretary to the mayor lawyer Rafaelito
Garayblas, city administrator Jay Marzan and chief of staff and media bureau
chief Ric de Guzman, among others, was marked by employees in colorful costumes
and props that they used in their respective numbers which highlighted the kind
of work their offices do.
Some department heads even joined in
the numbers prepared by their staff, to the delight of the mayor and those who
watched the program.
Lim congratulated all the employees
for their effort in making yesterday’s affair colorful and lively as he urged
them to continue giving the kind of service that residents deserve and expect.
After the program, Lim proceeded to
award home lots to qualified residents of Manila under its
“Land-for-the-Landless Program” in a simple ceremony at the Bulwagang Villegas
also in line with the week-long celebration of Araw ng Maynila.
Urban Settlements chief Victoria
Clavel said yesterday was the 13th time since July 2007 that the mayor has
awarded home lots to deserving beneficiaries.
A total of 42 families became instant
lot owners in the four districts of Manila particularly in Tondo (Districts I
and II), Sampaloc (District IV), Pandacan and Sta. Mesa (District VI).
Lim told the recipients that the city
government merely wanted to help them realize their dream of living on their
own lots.
Meanwhile, Clavel said those awarded
were landless families that were actual occupants of city estates under the
coverage of “Land-for-the-Landless Program.”
As of yesterday, Clavel said there
were already 6, 694 lot beneficiaries under the city’s land reform program
which started in 1967. Of these, 1,449 or 21.64 percent were awarded lots from
July 2007, following Lim’s reelection.
The granting of lot awards was
pursuant to the mayor’s 11-point agenda for Manila social development, she
added.
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