Acting Compostela mayor to appoint administrator

CEBU, Philippines - Department of the Interior and Local Government Central Visayas (DILG-7) Director Ananias Villacorta will appoint a Municipal Administrator for Compostela next year because he thinks he cannot perform well as a the town’s care taker with his busy schedule.

Villacorta said he needs to visit more frequently the provinces of Bohol, Negros Oriental and Siquijor to familiarize himself with his area of jurisdiction since he was just recently installed as DILG director in the region following the transfer of director Pedro Noval to Region 8.

The municipal administrator he will designate will come from one of the senior officers of DILG-7.

Villacorta said that the municipal administrator can focus himself to run the affairs of the town in the absence of an elected mayor.

He however assured that Compostela is in a stable condition.  Last week, he signed the vouchers for the P10,000 Christmas bonus of the employees which was mandated by Malacañang.

Villacorta agrees with Regional Development Council (RDC-7) chairman and Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama that the Commission on Elections must resolve the conflict in Compostela in no time because the employees and the constituents are mostly affected.

Villacorta said that the town is operating on a re-enacted budget since last year. They are using the P64-million reenacted budget of 2009 since last year, this year and most likely until 2013.

The reenactment of the budget has prevented the town to taste new projects and deprived the employees of the increases in salaries they ought to have under the salary standardization law.

Rama said that as the RDC-7 chair, he is urging the Comelec, DILG and the office of the President to resolve the issue in Compos-tela immediately and not wait for 2013. He said it is bad for the image of the region and the country as a whole.

Compostela has no elected officials since June 30 after the Comelec nullified the proclamation of all the winning candidates from the mayor down to the councilors because of the election protest filed by reelectionist Ritchie Wagas. (FREEMAN)