THE death threats received by Land Transportation Office Regional Director Victor Caindec from troll accounts “are just honest questions from Cebuanos who deserve to know,” said Cebu City Mayor Tomas Osmeña.
“It is he (referring to Caindec). I didn’t even know what he looks like. I’m afraid that some people don’t like him so much, I noticed in social media,” Osmeña said.
In his Facebook post, Osmeña said, “Is he the same person who is complaining about death threats today, the same Caindec who just last week happily insinuated that I have to ride in an armored car because I am on the drug list and my own police chief is going to kill me?”
The word war between Osmeña and Caindec began when the mayor criticized LTO for fining motorcycle drivers P12,000 for driving motorcycles with registration papers still pending approval by LTO.
It escalated further when the mayor pulled out the 24 traffic enforcers manning traffic at the Mambaling Underpass project after Caindec criticized him for not solving the traffic gridlock there and challenged him to resign. The traffic enforcers were redeployed in the area the next day.
Osmeña accused Caindec of playing the “victim card” by telling reporters that he and his family started receiving death threats through Facebook Messenger after his spat with the mayor started last week.
“So since you cannot win the argument, victim card na ipagawas? Are these the “serious death threats” that you were gleefully mocking just last Saturday?” Osmeña said in a post on his official Facebook page.
Meanwhile, Osmeña said he will not let the issue on the delay of the motorcycle registrations die down.
“I hit the LTO over the payment of P12,000 as penalty for driving without registration, which is the fault of LTO. The idiot (Caindec) answered using his name and said that if these drivers can’t be patient, they don’t deserve to drive,” said Osmeña in a follow-up text sent to Cebu Daily News.