CEBU, Philippines — Suspended Toledo City Mayor John Henry “Sonny” Osmeña is facing another complaint before the Office of the President over an alleged purchase of vehicles without approval from the secretary of the Department of Interior and Local Government.
Elmer Canillo, 64, a resident of Barangay Dumlog, Toledo City, filed an anti-graft case against Osmeña, claiming the mayor issued a purchase order to his favored supplier in a previous project.
Canillo alleged that Osmeña purchased 12 units of Nissan NP 300 Navara 4x4 MT at P1,630,575 each for a total cost of P19,566,900 from Nissan Cebu Distributors Inc. on August 11, 2015.
Such procurement, he said, was without approval from the DILG secretary and therefore a violation of administrative order reiterating the prohibition on the acquisition and use of luxury vehicles.
Canillo claimed that such acquisition was already paid.
On January 18, 2017, Osmeña also allegedly purchased seven more units at P1,638,000 each for a total amount of P11,466,000 or at a cost higher than the first purchase. Such acquisition, Canillo added, was also without approval from DILG.
Canillo is now asking the Office of the President to investigate Osmeña and to charge him with appropriate case.
Deputy Executive Secretary for Legal Affairs Ryan Alvin Acosta has directed Osmeña to file within 15 days his verified answer to the complaint of Canillo.
Canillo also filed an earlier complaint against Osmeña before the Office of the President for entering into an P18-million purchase agreement with the Cebu III Electric Cooperative allegedly without authority from the City Council.
Sought for comment, lawyer Inocencio Dela Cerna, legal counsel of Osmeña, said the complaint filed against his client was “a calculated move” in time for the barangay elections.
Dela Cerna also said it is a form of political harassment coming from persons interested to run for office this year and the next.
“I believe that there is a political figure out to wrestle leadership of Toledo City who has concealed himself by using the complainant as his proxy and has surreptitiously given the complainant records of City Hall transactions,” he told The FREEMAN.
Osmeña is being suspended by the Office of the Ombudsman for grave abuse authority over his alleged refusal to release the quarterly real property tax (RPT) shares of Barangay Daanglungsod. —/JMD (FREEMAN)