Former Cebu governor and 1st district representative Eduardo Gullas is not happy with the way Mayor Johnny V. delos Reyes is running Talisay City.
“For the past months, I was very quiet, but now it’s time to make a comment and to voice out,” the 83-year-old elder statesman said.
Gullas, who was Talisay City’s first mayor, lost to Delos Reyes by a hairline margin of 730 votes in the 2013 elections in a contest the incumbent mayor once described as a battle between a “piso” (chick) and a “buwaya” (crocodile), emphasizing his lack of resources and political clout. Delos Reyes won with 39,453 votes against Gullas’s 38,717 votes.
Before that, delos Reyes was unsuccessful in his bids for various elective positions, including the mayoralty and the 1st district congressional seat.
Before the start of his administration, delos Reyes vowed to initiate reforms at City Hall, focusing on providing jobs and livelihood for residents.
Barely a year in office, delos Reyes however, has been criticized for allegedly mismanaging the city government and for appointing his relatives to various positions at City Hall.
On the issue of nepotism, Gullas told reporters that it is the right of the people of Talisay City to know who among the mayor’s relatives were employed at City Hall.
Delos Reyes has appointed his son, John Yre, as his city administrator, while his wife, Myrna, children and other relatives were taken in as confidential staff, consultants, contractual and job order employees. Myrna heads City Hall’s Women’s Commission.
The mayor said there was nothing illegal with the appointments as he insisted that these were allowed under civil service rules. He further justified the move by saying he has more trust in his relatives which prompted Gullas to say that this indicates that delos Reyes doesn’t trust Talisaynons.
On the leadership crisis at the Talisay City College which continues to sow confusion a month before the opening of the school year, Gullas said he pities the students and their parents.
“Unsa man ang sala sa mga bata ug sa mga ginikanan,” Gullas said. (What did the students and their parents do to deserve this?)
He said the TCC used to be among the top performing city colleges in the country. The city government and the school administration should be focusing on improving the quality of instruction instead of wasting their time in politics.
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