GENERAL SANTOS CITY (23 January 2015) - Public Utility Vehicle (PUV) drivers got a chance to give their recommendations to City Mayor Ronnel Rivera and the rest of panelists of the first Public Transportation Summit Thursday, January 22, on how to solve the existing problems of the transport system of the city. The mayor thanked them for their suggestions and stated that what these drivers raised will be listed and will be integrated to the transportation management plan. (Gensan CPIO/ Russell Delvo)
GENERAL SANTOS CITY (23 January 2015) - City Mayor Ronnel Rivera hands the cash assistance to the elderlies of the city Tuesday, January 20, inside the City Hall. The cash assistance is a program by the Department of Social Welfare and Development and is implemented by the City Social Welfare and Development Office. (Gensan CPIO/ Russell Delvo)
More than 1, 000 elderly people from General Santos City have been enlisted as beneficiaries of monthly pension from the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD).
City social welfare and development officer Rebecca Magante said pension is released to the beneficiaries every quarter by the City Social Welfare and Development Office.
Senior citizens who reach the age of 77 and not a recipient of other pensions will qualify to avail of a P500 monthly pension from DSWD.
Calixta Bacalso, 91, a resident of Barangay Conel, was elated despite falling into a long queue inside the City Hall to claim her quarterly pension amounting to P1,500.
"I am very old already. I cannot work anymore. This pension will be of help for me to sustain my daily needs," Bacalso said.
City Mayor Ronnel Rivera thanked the DSWD for its support to the elderly people in the city.
"I need the support of other government agencies to help in developing Gensan into a competitive city that cares for the indigents and the marginalized sector," Rivera said.
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| Photo by Russell Delvo / Gensan CPIO |
Arturo Valero, regional director of the National Economic and Development Authority-12 (NEDA-12), said construction of the road project recently resumed following the negotiation made by City Mayor Ronnel Rivera with some 40 families who were affected by the project.
Valero said the construction of the bridge connecting Barangays Mabuhay and Apopong that will complete the circumferential road project had been hampered in the past due to issues involving the road-right-of-way. The bridge alone was supposed to have been finished last March.
The Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) sought the assistance of Rivera who held series of dialogues with the affected families.
“I had to intervene so that this project can proceed but at the same time, I should not set aside the welfare of my constituents. These negotiations will prove that we can come up with a win-win solution as long we meet halfway,” Rivera said.
The DPWH had resumed the construction of the bridge which costs P60 million.
The circumferential road, if completed, is expected to decongest traffic along the city’s major thoroughfares and provide a better connection between the city and its neighboring areas.
