Makati dads shell out cash for aides’ wages

MANILA, Philippines - Makati City councilors have agreed to pay the salaries of their staff out of their own pockets after Vice Mayor Romulo Peña refused to sign the checks and payroll vouchers, a councilor said yesterday.

Marie Alethea Casal-Uy said their aides’ salaries for the pay periods of March 16 to 31 and April 1 to 15 remain on hold.

As vice mayor, Peña is the city council’s presiding officer and is responsible for signing documents authorizing the release of the salaries of the 17 city councilors and their 82 personnel.

He earlier said that since he is acting mayor, the councilors – who chose to side with Mayor Jejomar Erwin Binay Jr. – will have choose from among their ranks the person who should talk to the banks for the processing of the checks and vouchers.

The dispute arose after Binay bucked the six-month preventive suspension order imposed on him by the Office of the Ombudsman and sought relief with the Court of Appeals (CA), which has issued a temporary restraining order.

The Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG), however, had Peña sworn in as acting mayor, based on a legal opinion issued by the Department of Justice (DOJ).

The councilors’ salaries remain on hold as well, but Uy said they “have agreed to provide temporary relief to our staff who are now burdened by the delay in the release of their salaries. Even though we, too, have not received our salaries, we cannot ignore their plight, as some of them already came to us crying while some even brought along their children to seek help.”

She said the councilors will give each of their staff financial aid of ranging from P3,000 to P5,000 to tide them over.

“Practically all of them rely on their salaries to pay household bills and buy basic necessities,” Uy said.

She said the city council is appealing to Peña to “respect our employees’ right to receive their salaries on time… Willfully denying them their wages is an injustice to them and their families.”

Uy also said the councilors have not appointed a presiding officer among themselves to sign the checks and payrolls of the city council’s employees, as suggested by Peña.

 “We remain firm in our stand that the temporary restraining order issued by the court continues to prevail over the legal opinion on which the vice mayor has been basing his actions. Makati has only one mayor, and that is… Binay,” she said.

“And to date, we still have one vice mayor, and that is… Peña. We still have 17 councilors, and Vice Mayor Peña is still the city council’s presiding officer, so there is no vacancy to fill up,” she added.

Uy said Peña has been absent for two consecutive sessions of the city council. Under the city council’s internal rules, any member – including the presiding officer – who is absent for three consecutive sessions may be fined and sanctioned, she said.

The CA has scheduled hearings on the petitions for review of the suspension order and contempt charges filed by Binay’s camp against Peña, the DILG and the DOJ today and tomorrow.