Labella: Nothing illegal in calamity aid

CEBU, Philippines -  Cebu City Vice Mayor Edgardo Labella stood firm on the legality of the P20,000 calamity assistance received by city hall officials and employees last December.

Labella yesterday took the floor at the City Council session to deliver a privilege speech in answer to the administrative complaint filed against him and 13 other city officials before the Office of the President for alleged “grave misconduct and grave abuse of authority.” 

He asked his fellow officials who were named respondents in the complaint filed by lawyer Reymelio Delute not to be daunted by it.

“Ako to’ng gihimo kay naa may mga kauban nako nga medyo naguol, and I wanted to assure them that I stand by them,” Labella explained why he needed to deliver a privilege speech.

According to him, there is nothing to worry about the complaint because they will meet the complaint head on.

Labella said that “to be affected by the calamity is not manifest only in broken doors, dislodged posts or roofless houses.”

He said that there are also conditions that the naked eye cannot distinguish that caused anxiety and trauma of Cebuanos from the calamities that struck the city such as the Oct. 15 earthquake and the Nov.8 super typhoon Yolanda.

“I personally agreed to disburse the calamity assistance as a way of rekindling the Christmas spirit after such catastrophic events, in the hope that the amount would start the pay-it-forward ripple, and have a wider reach for many people to share,” he said.

“I agreed that Christmas should be celebrated with less anguish on the after-effects of calamity,” he added.

Delute, in his complaint, alleged that the city officials committed “grave misconduct and abuse of authority” when they approved the appropriation and released the amount. Aside from Labella, other officials facing complaints are Mayor Michael Rama, City Councilors Nestor Archival Sr., Mary Ann delos Santos, David Tumulak, Nendell Hanz Abella, Sisinio Andales, Alvin Arcilla, Roberto Cabarrubias, Ma. Nida Cabrera, Gerardo Carillo, Alvin Dizon, Eugenio Gabuya Jr., and Noel Eleuterio Wenceslao.

The complaint did not include City Councilors Margarita “Margot” Osmeña, Leah Japson, James Cuenco, Richard “Richie” Osmeña, and Association of Barangay Councils president and council ex-officio member Phillip Zafra, who opted not to receive their allocation.  (FREEMAN)