Partido Barug sees hope in getting City Council majority

Partido Barug-PDP Laban Councilors take their oath of office at the Plaza Sugbo on Sunday, June 30, 2019. | Delta Dyrecka Letigio

CEBU CITY, Philippines — The Cebu City’s new administration party, Partido Barug-PDP Laban, has new hopes that soon the party will be getting the majority of the Cebu City Council following the Commission on Election (Comelec) en banc to cancel the certificates of candidacy of two Bando Osmeña-Pundok Kauswagan (BOPK) councilors.

The Comelec en banc denied the motion for reconsideration of both Councilors Alvin Arcilla and Sisinio Andales affirming the decisions of the Comelec First and Second Divisions to disqualify Arcilla and Andales to run for the May 2019 elections.

Read more: After Arcilla, Comelec disqualifies Andales’ candidacy in May 2019 elections

The Comelec ruled that Andales and Arcilla were able to complete three consecutive terms from 2010 to 2019 even if they were suspended for three months in 2016 along with other city officials for the release of P20,000 calamity fund to the City Hall employees after the 2015 earthquake and typhoon Yolanda tragedies.

Arcilla was not able to obtain a temporary restraining order (TRO) from the Supreme Court within the allotted five days for his appeal and so Councilor Jerry Guardo, who garnered ninth place in the recent elections for the city’s North District, would take his place.

Guardo is set to be proclaimed on July 1 at the Comelec national office.

Read more: Guardo to be proclaimed as Cebu City Councilor on Monday

Guardo was affiliated with BO-PK in his last term, but recently, he expressed support to Mayor Edgardo Labella’s administrations, and it was reported that he would be moving to Partido Barug soon.

The councilor is expected to announce his official party affiliation once he takes oath in front of Labella on July 2, before the inaugural session.

Read more: Guardo pledges support for Labella: ‘Now is the time to unite for the good of Cebu City’

Guardo already said he would be attending a meeting of Barug councilors as there had been talks of possible committee chairmanships and memberships as they anticipated their being majority in the council in the next few weeks.

However, to this day, the BO-PK still rules the council with 9 members to Partido Barug’s 8 official members.

Councilor David Tumulak, who was also an ally of BO-PK in his last term, recently announced his becoming independent and expressed his support to Mayor Labella and even took his oath with the rest of the Barug councilors.

Tumulak has yet to announce his allegiance to a party in the council but if he becomes an ally of Barug, the Council will become a tie for both parties.

For Andales’ case, he opted to file an appeal to the Supreme Court. His camp has yet to obtain a TRO on the Comelec en banc’s decision.

He has been given five days to seek for a TRO, and if he fails to get one, the Comelec en banc can execute its decision. This will mean that Andales may no longer sit as a councilor.

Councilor Joel Garganera of Partido Barug will take Andales place as he garnered the 10th highest votes in the recent elections.

Mayor Labella is hoping that the Supreme Court will affirm the en banc’s decision on Andales as this would place Barug as the majority party for the council with 10 councilors to BO-PK’s eight councilors.

He said that a majority in the council would ensure that the projects he would be proposing would get a higher chance of approval.

Athough he said he trusted the council to be objective, he still had his concerns over some projects that might hit a snag if the opposition would take the majority.

Labella said that once Barug would become the majority, the party would allow the opposition to hold committee leaderships and memberships, staying true to his promise of an inclusive governance.

“We will allow them to have committee leadership and membership. All of us have the same goal, to serve the people,” he said.

In previous statements, Councilor Andales said that gaining the majority in the council would be important for the parties because the majority would decide on the formation of committees in the Council.

The committees are focus groups composed of a chairman, a vice chairman, and members that will look into the different aspects of legislation such as Committee on Laws, Committee on Sports and Games, and Committee on Education.

Read more: Inayawan landfill closure, rehab plan to be tackled by 15th Cebu City Council

The committee chairmen and members will soon be announced after the inaugural session on Tuesday, July 2.

The 15th City Council have agreed to retain the regular sessions on Tuesday afternoons./dbs