Citation ticket versus Labangon exec questioned

CEBU, Philippines - Officials of Barangay Labangon in Cebu City are protesting the issuance of a citation ticket to one of their councilmen for his alleged failure to enforce the waste segregation law and proper collection of garbage.

In a resolution, the Labangon Council headed by Barangay Captain Victor Buendia claimed that councilman Ian Anthony Osmeña was issued the ticket automatically because he chairs the barangay’s committee on environment.

“There was no question on the purpose and intention of the issuance of the citation ticket but the manner and the circumstances leading to the issuance of the ticket was questionable,” the resolution reads.

The council contends that while Leonardo Abarquez, the one who issued the citation ticket, identified himself as a member of the City Environmental Sanitation Enforcement Team (CESET), the group’s head, Grace Luardo, reportedly said otherwise and disclosed that Abarquez is actually part of the monitoring team of the Department of Public Services (DPS).

Also, Abarquez allegedly issued the ticket without coordinating with the Barangay Environmental Officers (BEO) first.

If he had done so, the council said, Abarquez would have learned that the BEO’s assigned in Labangon reportedly do not take orders from the barangay officials because their salary is being paid by the city and not by the barangay.

Abarquez reportedly issued the citation ticket to Osmeña because the latter failed to clean the surroundings of Labangon’s old barangay hall where different kinds of garbage could reportedly be found.

This reportedly violated the Ecological Solid Waste Management Act and City Ordinance 1361.

The council pointed out that there are many areas in the barangay that the BEOs allegedly have not cleaned.

Luardo said her office had already issued several citation tickets to barangay officials who continue to ignore their task to improve the garbage collection and waste segregation in their barangay, but said “unya na kami mo-isyu nila og citation kun wala gihapon sila’y himoon human namo gitawag ang ilang atensiyon.” —/JMO (FREEMAN)