Lawyer Jocelyn Pesquera can explain away her refund of the P20,000 that suspended Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama received as calamity aid along with other Cebu City officials and employees back in 2013 and yet cannot expect to stop public speculations about why she did it, especially in light of the election season.
Her public explanation was that she wanted the mayor to be “on equal footing” with the other officials identified with the Bando Osmena-Pundok Kauswagan (BO-PK) camp who returned their calamity aid after being included in the complaint filed by lawyer Reymelio Delute, a lawyer identified with the BO-PK camp.
The mayor’s critics will see it as an admission of guilt but Pesquera, a former city councilor known to be close to Rama, is known for her being outspoken as evidenced by her counter arguments in online social posts criticizing the mayor and his administration.
Pesquera’s move wasn’t exactly condemned by the mayor, who nevertheless denied that he asked her to do it. It was an isolated incident, he said, and one he wouldn’t approve of given that he is still contesting the complaint along with his Team Rama allies at the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG).
We have little doubt that the mayor will reimburse Pesquera for her payment even if she doesn’t require it. But does it really have any bearing on the case despite Delute’s pronouncement that it doesn’t?
Pesquera’s reimbursement, according to the mayor, doesn’t weaken his stance that the P20,000 calamity aid is legal. Rama is digging in his heels about this case as does Delute, who insisted that the mayor’s statements belie any change in his position.
One can argue about the merits of the case but the real concern of the mayor and his allies, regardless of how they try to downplay it, is the possibility that Rama will again be suspended for another couple of months.
With the mayor out of power at least a few months before the elections, the BO-PK has greater leverage to impose whatever programs they may have against Team Rama and reintroduce a lot of their programs including their plans on the South Road Properties (SRP).
The whole calamity aid case, in which Rama and city officials stand accused of receiving aid even if there is no evidence confirming that they suffered damages from the 2013 earthquake and supertyphoon Yolanda, had become so politicized that both sides can be expected to maximize the fallout to their advantage.
How this will play out among Cebu City residents, who have the power to vote them into or out of office, both camps cannot say.
But those who care enough to monitor the developments of the case will have to take into consideration Pesquera’s move as it will definitely impact on whether or not the mayor will be suspended.
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