CEBU, Philippines - Cebu City councilors are facing another complaint, this time before the Office of the Ombudsman, for suspending the deliberation and approval of Supplemental Budget No. 1 that the executive department said could have paid for the city’s payables.
Evelyn Montes, a resident of San Miguel, Barangay Apas, filed criminal and administrative complaints against Councilors Margarita Osmeña, Nestor Archival, Sr., Lea Japson, Mary Ann Delos Santos, Sisinio Andales, Alvin Arcilla, Roberto Cabarrubias, Ma. Nida Cabrera, Alvin Dizon and Eugenio Gabuya, Jr. on Tuesday.
She asked the Ombudsman to suspend the councilors preventively as it investigates the allegations.
She said the councilors violated the Anti-graft and Corrupt Practices Act, the Code of Conduct and Ethical Standards for Public Officials and Employees, and the Local Government Code for failing to deliberate on SB-1 allegedly even without justifiable reason.
“Respondents’ insistence to suspend action on a matter so imbued with public interest, despite having no sound legal reason to do so, is clearly tainted by manifest partiality, evident bad faith and gross inexcusable negligence on the part of respondents,” Montes’ complaint reads.
She said the failure of the council to deliberate and approve SB-1 held hostage the prepayment of city’s outstanding loan from the Japan International Cooperating Agency (JICA) for the development of the South Road Properties (SRP), the payment of garbage-tipping fees, and the 2015 productivity enhancement incentive (PEI) for employees, among others.
Members of the council’s majority block have suspended deliberations on SB-1 because the source of funds is the money the city earned from the sale of lots at the SRP, a transaction that was a subject of a court case at that time.
Montes said the councilors’ insistence in preventing the appropriation of the proceeds of the SRP sale caused undue injury to the city residents and the city government in the form of interest payments made by the latter to JICA.
Cebu City entered into a loan for the SRP with the principal amount of 12,315,000,000 yen. The government is spending P589 million every year for debt servicing of the SRP loan. The loan was payable in 20 years, ending in 2025.
The city government has an outstanding balance of P2,423,583,200, excluding the interest, as of December 2015.
Montes said if the outstanding balance will not be paid, the city stands to incur further substantial losses in the form of interest expenses.
Also on Tuesday, lawyer Jose Daluz III, a former city councilor, also filed a civil case for mandamus before the court to compel the council to act on SB-1. He said there was legal mandate for the councilors to act on the supplemental budget and not just sit on it.
Dead?
With the year ending today, Archival, the acting vice mayor, said SB-1 is already “dead” but city attorney Jerone Castillo said the council can still tackle the budget next year.
“It is my humble opinion that the SB1 should be deliberated until finished because under Section 53 of the Local Government Code states that if you are on recess, you have to continuously adjourn on a day to day basis until you obtain a quorum,” Castillano said.
“Even if the year ends, it must be deliberated because naa may kaso nga for them to act on it, dili ingon nga i-approve but to approve, disapprove, or to act on it. Not necessarily to approve,” he added.
Tuesday sessions
For the first time in the history of the council, a midnight session was called the other night after several failed attempts at a quorum during the day.
Archival described as “illegal” the session Councilor Gerardo Carillo called four hours prior at 8 p.m.
“As far as I’m concerned, I am the vice mayor. Nobody can call a session except me. During that (2 p.m. and 5 p.m.) special session, I declared a recess. A session should be resumed. I don’t know what happened why there was another session (8 p.m.). It was illegal and not in order,” he said.
He said the move of Carillo in taking over as presiding officer, as well as the action of the minority members to join the 8 p.m. session, was a form of “defiance.”
“For me, it is defiance. As a body, we should respect each other. I am stressing that earlier, I called for a recess. But, what happened was that they called for another session which is not in order,” Archival said.
Archival said he told the minority on the predicament of the majority against acting on SB-1 until the court renders “entry of finality of judgment.”
“SB1 is just a name. It is the money that we want to use for something that is good for everyone. So, if we want to use the money in 2016, it is the same money,” he added.
Majority of the councilors belong to the Bando Osmeña Pundok Kauswagan (BOPK) while the rest are allies of suspended Mayor Michael Rama.
No one from either party attended the 12 midnight session.
Dismayed
Team Rama councilors expressed their disenchantment over the non-appearance of BOPK councilors in the 10 a.m. special session considering the need to act on SB-1.
Carillo cited Section 53 of the Local Government Code that councilors who have not showed up may be arrested by the police force so that they will be compelled to attend the session.
He said nine councilors, excluding the presiding officer, are needed to transact official business.
“Section 53 B of the Local Government Code states that where there is no quorum, the presiding officer may declare a recess until such time as a quorum is constituted, or a majority of the members present may adjourn from day to day and may compel the immediate attendance of any member absent without justifiable cause by designating a member of the sanggunian, to be assisted by a member or members of the police force assigned in the territorial jurisdiction of the local government unit concerned, to arrest the absent member and present him at the session,” he said.
But Carillo said they chose not to push the issue.
“We were not able to attain a quorum so although naa unta mi power to issue an arrest to them but this is Christmas Season. We just appeal for their sense of responsibility and oath of office. Nevertheless, wala man gyod sila nanunga, wala natay mabuhat ana,” he said.
He said they would just leave the matter to “the sound judgment of the Cebuanos.”
Archival, for his part, said calling for the special session was a form of disrespect.
“I just like to express my sadness about what happened yesterday (December 29) where the minority made a very unjustifiable takeover of the city council. And their action showed disrespect to the institution where there should have an ultimate respect,” he said.
“Why are they pushing very hard…when in fact, there are two more days to come? What is the reason? For me, the reason is just a drama or something that would tell the constituents, look we are working when in fact they are not,” he said.
“It is very clear that SB1 is dead. In so many sessions we had, most of them they are absent. They tried to find a way for them to portray us (BOPK Councilors) as something bad…this is usurpation of my authority as the presiding officer,” Archival added.
An ally of Rama, acting mayor Edgardo Labella said the sessions conducted by the minority bloc were “valid” as provided under the council’s house rules.
Labella said Carillo did the right thing in taking over when Archival did not listen to the objection of the members of the council present in the session. — /JMO (FREEMAN)