MIRO
IT WAS with relief that Cebu City Mayor Tomas Osmeña greeted the news about the dismissal of the murder complaint filed against Winefredo Miro in connection with the ambush of Ermita Barangay Captain Felicisimo “Imok” Rupinta.
The mayor is now thinking of hiring Miro to supervise and manage a piggery, possibly at Shell Island, located between Cordova, Mactan Island and mainland Cebu.
“Since he is out of money, we’re going to make a study. That Shell island there, we’re going to make a piggery there. But it’s still just a study,” he explained.
“I have to work it out. Whether it’s managed by Cordova or DENR (Department of Environment and Natural Resources). It’s still a study, we’ll find out along the way. Maybe one of my friends would want to join me,” Osmeña added.
Osmeña said that he came up with the idea of putting up a piggery because of the rising demand for lechon (roasted pig) in Cebu.
“When you raise pigs, the number one expense is feed. The city has 10 tons of vegetables that come out of the market everyday and they can be used as feeds. But this is not for regular pigs. This is for lechon. Because there’s a very strong demand for
lechon. And I’m contributing to the city,” explained Osmeña.
DENR has claimed ownership over Shell Island, which they say is an unclassified forest land.
Cebu Coliseum gained ownership of Shell Island after securing a forest land agreement (FLAG) with DENR but turned it over to the state’s environmental bureau after leasing it for 50 years.
But in 2015, the Cordova Municipal Government, then headed by its former mayor and now Presidential Adviser on Legislative Affairs, Adelino Sitoy, said Cordova has the right to take over the island.
Meanwhile, Osmeña believes that Miro was just a victim of political harassment to pressure the latter to implicate him in Rupinta’s murder.
“They really want me as the target. They’re putting pressure on Miro to implicate me. It’s all ridiculous,” said Osmeña.
“He has no money. Do you think he has the money to pay the gunmen to kill Imok?” he asked.
Miro, who served as barangay councilor of Ermita, and also the former Cebu City Market Operations Division chief, was named as the alleged mastermind in the ambush-slay of Rupinta.
But the Cebu Provincial Prosecutor’s Office dismissed the complaint for insufficiency of evidence to prove Miro was involved in the murder of Imok last November 2017.
Rupinta and his common-law wife Jocelyn Mendoza were ambushed by motorcycle riding assailants in Barangay Tayud, Liloan town.
Rupinta was hit in the head and died, while Mendoza escaped unscathed.
Mendoza said Miro “orchestrated the assassination of Rupinta taking into consideration the longstanding feud between Miro and
Rupinta for the control and dominance of the vendors association and other sources of income at the Carbon market.”