Labella, Mary Ann: Why include us in admin case?

Cebu CIty Vice Mayor Edgar Labella and Councilor Mary Ann delos Santos yesterday questioned why they were included in the administrative complaint filed with the Office of the President about receiving P20,000 as calamity aid last year.

Labella said not all city councilors were named in the case even though the resolution to extend the P20,000 calamity assistance was “carried unanimously” by the City Council in their Dec. 18 regular session.

“Councilor Mary Ann delos Santos was also absent during the passage of the resolution, but why was she included?” Labella asked.

Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama, Labella and 12 other councilors were impleaded in an administrative complaint for grave misconduct and abuse of authority filed by Cebu-based lawyer Reymelio Delute.

Delute, a Bando Osmeña-Pundok Kauswagan (BO-PK) candidate who lost his bid for the post of Basak San Nicolas barangay chairman, said the cash aid was an illegal appropriation.

He said the officials classified themselves as calamity victims in order to avail of this.

Not included in the complaint were Councilors Margarita “Margot” Osmeña, wife of former mayor and BO-PK leader Tomas Osmeña, Lea Japson, Richard Osmeña and James Anthony Cuenco.

Sought for comment, Delute said his complaint wasn’t based on the resolution but on the actual passage of Supplemental Budget (SB) 3 by the council on Dec. 19.

Basis

Minutes of the session where Budget Ordinance 2379 was approved with P133 millionin SB3, P61 million was set aside for the P20,000 calamity financial assistance for each city government employee and offiical.

Page seven of the ordinance states that while SB3 was carried, Margot abstained while Councilors Japson and Richard Osmeña were out of the session hall.

Cuenco, on the other hand, was still absent but delos Santos was already present.

Labella, however, was citing an earlier Dec. 18 session, where a resolution on the matter was passed.

Cuenco and delos Santos were absent during the passage of the resolution to give the calamity assistance.

“I should not be part of the case. Councilor James Cuenco was also absent. That is tantamount to not approving the resolution because physically, I’m not there. So why am I impleaded in the case and not James Cuenco?” delos Santos said.

Labella said that even if he was present, he was only the presiding officer.

“As presiding officer, I don’t vote. I only vote when there is a tie,” he said.