Councilor Dave Tumulak said he has decided to join BO-PK since a month ago although he has not formally requested BO-PK leader Mayor Tomas Osmeña to accept him. (CDN PHOTO/JOSE SANTINO S. BUNACHITA)
Cebu City Councilor Dave Tumulak has officially expressed his intent to join the Bando Osmeña-Pundok Kauswaga (BO-PK) party.
In an interview on Monday morning, Tumulak set the record straight and clarified that he no longer wants to be an independent councilor in the Cebu City Council.
“I decided to join BO-PK if BO-PK will accept me. The basis (of my decision) is I saw that they are more focused on how to improve the city especially in terms of basic services,” he said.
In contrast, he criticized the Team Rama members of the city council for focusing more on controversies and issues.
He also said that he found that his own personal advocacy on maintaining public order and safety is the same with that of Cebu City Mayor Tomas Osmeña, the leader of BO-PK.
Although he said he already came up with his decision to join BO-PK around a month ago, Tumulak said he has not formally requested Mayor Osmeña to recognize him as an official member of the BO-PK.
If he won’t be accepted, Tumulak said “I will stand on my own.”
But even if he will already be part of BO-PK, he said he will continue to act on his personal principles and on what will be good for the city.
“It does not necessarily mean that if I will be with BO-PK, I will just follow what the mayor wants to dictate on us. I will follow my conscience for the good of the city. If in case there are some party decision that cannot benefit the City of Cebu, rest assured I will not vote,” Tumulak said.
With Tumulak’s decision, only Councilor Hanz Abella remains an independent councilor in the city council.
Last Saturday, Councilor Jerry Guardo announced his bolting from Team Rama to join BO-PK.
Although he is still on a three-month suspension, once Guardo will be back in June, the BO-PK will already have eight members in the council, equal to Team Rama’s eight members.