Labella orders termination of City Hall JO arrested for drugs possession

CEBU CITY, Philippines — Mayor Edgardo Labella has ordered dismissed a Job Order (JO) employee of the Cebu City Hall following his arrest this afternoon for the possession of suspected shabu.

“You have no place in the Cebu City Government! Your place is in jail! I already directed the HRDO and the City Legal Office to prepare the Termination Letter of this Job Order personnel. You’re FIRED!,” Labella said in a Facebook post at 5 p.m. today, April, 21, 2020.

Edgardo M. Flores Jr., 29, was arrested as he was about to cross the boundary between the cities of Talisay and Cebu at about 12:30 p.m. today.

Flores, a resident of Barangay Lawaan I in Talisay City, works as Social Amelioration Program (SAP) profiler for the Cebu City Treasurer’s Office.

Police Major Gerard Ace Pelare, chief of the Talisay City Police Station, said the suspect was walking on his way to work when he was asked to stop for the inspection of his quarantine pass at a police checkpoint located on Talisay City’s side of the Cebu South Coastal Road (CSCR).

Pelare said that a sachet of suspected shabu fell from the suspect’s pocket during the inspection.

Talisay City police confiscated a total of six sachets of shabu from Flores’ possession.

Flores is now detained at the Talisay City Police Station detention facility while police prepare for the filing of a complaint for the violation of the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002 against him.

Lawyer Rey Gealon, head of Cebu City’s Legal Office, said that he already recommended for the termination of Flores.

“Surely, Mayor Edgar Labella does not condone any wrongdoing in his administration, especially if it involves illegal drugs,” said Gealon. / dcb