By Joseph Bernard A. Marzan
On his first day back from a nearly three-month medical leave, Iloilo City Mayor Jerry Treñas said Monday, December 9, that he would focus on completing ongoing programs and projects as he wraps up his tenure as mayor.
The 68-year-old mayor received a warm welcome from city hall employees, followed by an informal meeting with department heads. He also signed an endorsement for the proposed extension of the 40-percent Real Property Tax reduction to 2026.
Treñas said his priority is to finish what he started when he returned to office in 2019, including projects that remain in the pipeline.
Key projects include the reopening of the city’s public markets, the completion of the legislative building, the Iloilo City Government Center (ICGC), the city slaughterhouse, and a parking building adjacent to city hall, which currently houses a branch of the Development Bank of the Philippines (DBP).
The ICGC at Aduana Street will house the Local Economic Development and Investment Promotions (LEDIP) Office and a Business One-Stop Shop center to streamline regulatory processes for businesses.
The legislative building, located between the Ker & Co. Building and the Freedom Grandstand, will host offices under the Sangguniang Panlungsod, its session hall, and the Office of the Building Official. The first three floors are expected to open by the first quarter of 2025.
Treñas highlighted the city’s effort to upgrade the slaughterhouse to “Double A” standards, acknowledging challenges in securing private-sector partnerships.
“We really sought to have the slaughterhouse undergo Public-Private Partnership, [but] for five years, no one was interested,” Treñas said Monday. “That’s why we decided to do it ourselves because we cannot afford to have a slaughterhouse that is not ‘Double A.’”
The parking building is also in progress, and Treñas expressed hope for its completion within his term.
“That’s what’s remaining for me, because I look at it that by June 30, I will be turning over the city to the new mayor who will take over together with the new city council,” he added.
Treñas had been on medical leave since late September. He underwent a bile duct operation on November 11 and returned to Iloilo City on December 6.
