The mayor on the move: lady chief conducts site inspections

By LAIMINH MABULAY
July 10, 2013

CATBALOGAN CITY – Damaged roofing, congested areas, illegal wiring connections, illegal structures, public bathrooms that are out-of-order, garbage-filled spots – these were the sites that met the eyes of the first City Lady Mayor Stephany Uy-Tan as she conducted a surprise visit to the City Government’s external offices and other public facilities during her first week in office.

Among the places visited where Pier 1, Public Market, the new bus terminal and public cemetery, Barangay 3 Footbridge. Visiting these places enabled the mayor to see the actual state of the city’s public facilities gave her an insight as to the steps that should be made to improve and develop them.

With her during these visits to give recommendations were General Services Officer Rico Macabare, City Economic Enterprise and Public Utilities Officer Victor Pagarao and Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Action Officer Eliot Lopez.

The findings gained from these visits were already relayed to the concerned department heads for immediate action and are now being addressed appropriately.

Going out into the city and exploring its harsh realities served as her next move after the inter-office visit she conducted in her first day as she strives for a more “open and consultative” style of management. “Hadto pa, karuyag ko na talaga it hands-on, tikang han kapitan ako to councilor, from ABC President to Councilor, much more yana nga city mayor na”, she said.

According to her, the visits in both the external and internal offices enabled her to establish rapport with department heads and staff and know their concerns regarding the performance of their jobs. “Kay feeling ko it, success hit usa ka institution or hit mga programs, aada la gihapon kun gaano kaupay magtrabaho an mga department heads ngan mga employees, kun maupay hira magtrabaho, maupay mga pag-implement han programs” she added.

The first week in office was a whirlwind of visits and courtesy calls for Mayor Step, as she is known to her staff. Initial talks with office heads during this period already yielded serious topics that would be treated more thoroughly during the meetings she intend to conduct within this week.