"Mess Cebu" controversy CCTC to discuss demand to remove commissioner

CEBU, Philippines - The members of Cebu City Tourism Commission will finally discuss tomorrow the demand of the Burden family to remove Philipp Rodriguez as a commissioner of the CCTC for his being chairman of the controversial Miss Cebu 2009 beauty pageant.

“Okay, ako na nga i-discuss sa mga sakop sa Commission ang giingong demand sa pamilya ni Kimberly Therese Burden nga gipaagi sa mga sakop sa media,” said acting CCTC chairman and acting Vice Mayor Hilario Davide III.

Acting Mayor Michael Rama said he would abide with whatever decision the CCTC reaches.

Some City Hall officials, however, already expect the 13-member CCTC, including Councilor Arsenio Pacaña and first lady Margot Osmeña, may not agree to the demand of the Burdens to kick out Rodriguez from his position.

Davide said the commissioners of the CCTC, whose task is to find ways to encourage tourism in the city, are not receiving any pay for their services.

Dr. Rowena Burden, the mother of the 19-year-old Miss Cebu 2009 2nd runner-up, was dissatisfied with the findings and recommendations of the City Hall’s three-man fact-finding team who only recommended that the CCTC, including its marketing consultant Bruce Bollozos, should only publicly apologize to the Burdens.

The issue started after Bollozos informed some of the CCTC members, who in turn told the emcee of the event that beauty pageant contestant Kris Tiffany Janson won the Globe Texter’s Award, although he later admitted that it was Burden who garnered the highest number of text votes.

But Bollozos criticized the members of the investigating team headed by councilor Gerardo Carillo for their findings, which he said were based on “twisted facts”.

The award should have been given to Burden, a physical therapy student of the Cebu Doctors University, who garnered 117,959 text votes compared to Janson who only got a little over 95,000 votes.

But while Janson lost in the Globe Texter’s Choice Award, she won the Miss Cebu 2009 contest.

Davide also said that the issue about the reported wrong cellphone prize that was given for the winner of the Globe Texter’s Choice was already resolved after cellular phone distributor Audionet clarified that the Sumsung Omnia was not really for the Globe Texter’s Award winner, but for the Miss Cebu 2009.

Dr. Burden had complained because while the emcee announced that the winner of the Globe Texter’s Choice Award will receive a Samsung Omnia, the cell phone that is now at the CCTC is a Nokia 7310, which is much cheaper. –Rene U. Borromeo/BRP   (THE FREEMAN)