Suspended Dumanjug mayor calls on Davide to assure him he’ll not follow elder sister Gwen’s footsteps

YELLOW SUNSHINE SWEETNESS. Who would say that these two men belong to two rival political camps? Cebu Gov. Hilario Davide III (right) gives suspended Dumanjug Mayor Nelson Garcia a warm smile and a firm handshake as the latter drops by at the provincial capitol yesterday morning. (CDN PHOTO/JUNJIE MENDOZA)

The suspension that many expect to be a reprise of the tension and drama-filled event that had then Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia barricading herself in the provincial capitol for over a month would mostly go on sans the bells, whistles and fireworks.

Cebu Gov. Hilario Davide III on Friday signed an executive order suspending Dumanjug Mayor Nelson Garcia for 60 days, affirming the recommendation of the Provincial Board to sanction the mayor for usurpation of authority.

A team from the Capitol led by Provincial Legal Officer Orvi Ortega immediately set off to Dumanjug, 75 kilometers southwest of Cebu City, to serve the order, but the mayor was not in the municipal hall and his secretary refused to receive the order.

Speculations were rife that the situation would be similar to Gwen’s case where the mayor’s elder sister defied an order from the Office of the President suspending her for six months by refusing to accept the order served by representatives of the Department of Interior and Local Government and holed herself up in the Governor’s Office.

The expected deja vu showdown was not going to happen.

Mayor Garcia earlier gave his assurance that he will not follow the footsteps of his older sister.

To further affirm his promise, the mayor yesterday went to the Governor’s Office where he was warmly welcomed by Davide who defeated his brother, Pablo John, in the May 2013 elections.

There was no trace of the bitter political rivalry evident as Mayor Garcia was ushered into the Governor’s Office where he and Davide had an animated talk acting like long-lost friends.

The governor’s staffers said the visit was “unexpected”. Davide too admitted that Garcia’s gesture also caught him off guard.

“In a way, I was not expecting him to do that. I was surprised but I’m happy that he came. He told me that he wants to follow the orders of the governor,” he told reporters in an interview.

“He remained calm and did not indicate resistance. According to him, he is willing to take a vacation because the position is not worth dying for,” he added.

Garcia arrived at the Governor’s Office at 10 a.m. without prior notice yesterday morning and was greeted by Davide with a handshake.

The two officials, known to be members of rival political parties, then engaged in a cordial 20-minute conversation while seated inside the office following an exchange of pleasantries.

The suspended mayor, who was wearing a yellow polo shirt and denim pants, said he will “heed the governor’s order.”

Explaining his absence when the suspension order was served Friday, he said: “I was not able to receive the suspension order but I heard it from the media that’s why I went here to tell the governor that I will not defy the order.”

He added that he will use the next two months to spend more time with his wife and children.
“Magpagamay ko sa akong tiyan. Mag-exercise ko. My family is actually happy because I can have quality time with them.”

“For me, the number one priority is family, not politics,” said Garcia.

Limitations

Davide said Garcia is free to “go in and out” of his office in the town hall as long as he does not sign official documents of the local government unit (LGU).

Vice Mayor Guntrano Gica will hold office in the Mayor’s Office during the time he’ll serve as acting mayor.

Davide said Gica gave his assurance that Garcia’s office “will remain untouched” until the mayor resumes office by the middle of June.

“He’s free to go in and out of his office. His things should not be touched. Acting Mayor Gica will also hold office outside his room.,” he said.

Garcia is not allowed to perform his functions as municipal mayor within the two-month suspension, including affixing his signature to any of the town’s official documents.

Yesterday, Gica held a meeting with the town’s department heads and said he received a favorable response from them including the employees.

No rallies were staged outside the town hall to protest the suspension of the mayor, he said.

Question of law

Despite his acceptance of the preventive suspension, Garcia remained adamant on his stand that the PB’s recommendation for the suspension was a product of partisan politics.

He said the suspension did not have enough basis because he cannot “influence the parties of the case while in office.”

“In all these to sum up, I am still confused as to why I was suspended. But I’ve come to accept it because the decision came from a higher authority. Anyway, my position is not worth dying for,” he told reporters.

The committee headed by Board Member Arleigh Sitoy recommended the mayor’s preventive suspension saying there was a risk that he would intimidate or threaten witnesses while he’s in office.

The committee reasoned that the suspension is fitting in the case since “the issues are joined, evidence of guilt is strong, the gravity of the offense has a great possibility that the continuance in office of the respondent could influence or pose a threat to the witnesses.”

The complaints committee is chaired by Sitoy and is composed of members’ Raul Alcoseba, Grecilda “Gigi” Sanchez, Peter John Calderon, Christopher Baricuatro and Miguel Magpale – all members of the Liberal Party (LP). The case stemmed from Garcia’s “designation” of Emmylou Cabonillas as secretary of the municipal council, a power which Gica insists resides with the vice mayor.