Mayor pursues PPP scheme for Iloilo City abattoir

FOUR COMPANIES have expressed interest in the Iloilo City abattoir improvement project, which is being planned to be placed under a public-private partnership (PPP) scheme, according to Mayor Jerry P. Treñas. “I already talked with PPP Center and they will be coming here this July to look into the slaughterhouse development. There are four interested parties,” Mr. Treñas said last week. The city’s Local Economic Enterprise Office (LEEO) head, Jose Ariel Castañeda, welcomed the announcement saying it is the best option for the long overdue upgrade plan for the abattoir that has failed to secure any certification standards from the Department of Agriculture. “It’s a welcome development because that’s what I’m trying to propose to the previous administrations since the time of former mayor Jed Patrick Mabilog. Subjecting it to PPP is by the far the best thing that will be introduced to the slaughterhouse,” Mr. Castañeda said. He added that the slaughterhouse “really requires a fast and immediate attention” given its “deplorable state.” — Emme Rose S. Santiagudo