By Mortz C. Ortigoza
The heydays of the dominant opposition solons in the
legislative body (Sangguniang Panlungsod) in Dagupan City seem to be over in
more than six months of schism after two of its members “defected” to the
minority members who are allied with Mayor Belen T. Fernandez.
Councilors Alvin Coquia and Malou Fernandez declared their cooperation to all and sundry to pass needed legislative measures – like the P1.3 billion snagged 2023 budget – in the first Local Development Council (LDC) meeting held last January 16 in the city.
A day before the LDC meeting, Mayor Fernandez posted on her Facebook
account about the “pasabog (explosion)” she would tell her constituents the
following day.
Excerpt of what Coquia said: Kaya po kami nandito para ipakita na kami po ay sumusuporta sa inyong liderato
Mayor (crowd applauded wildly while some Fernandez supporters cheered “I loved
you, Alvin!”). Nandito po kami para pakinggan po ang inyong program. Siyempre
alam naman po natin sa amin po majority
naghihintay na kaya po na magkaroon tayo ng paguusap upang maplansa po ang
hindi po mapagkaunawaan.
Excerpt of what Coun. Fernandez, a dentist, has said: Iyong aming hinaing sinabi ni Councilor
Alvin iyong unity na lang talaga. Ang inaasaha - asahan ng bawat isa majority
one minority iyon po ang kailangang natin.
Politics in the Bangus City have been polarized even before
Fernandez defeated last year in an acrimonious election former Mayor Brian Lim.
The rivals are competitors in the chains of malls in Northern and Central
Luzon. Fernandez allies in the lawmaking body in 2021 and the first semester of
2022 stalled Lim’s proposed P1.38 billion city’s budget. They approved it only
in the transition period before Fernandez – a former mayor defeated by Lim in
the 2019 election - assumed office at noon
of June 30, 2022.
In that assumption, Fernandez saw the political legislative
landscape reverse from those dominant solons who were friendly to her to the
hostile one – seven of them versus five with Fernandez – who would not acquiesce
on the proposed legislative measures from the Mayor’s office. They even
procrastinated or have the intention not to approve the P1.3 billion for this
year.
Retribution or poetic justice, eh, against Fernandez who
power played earlier against their mayor?
Without the P1.3 billion budget, the city could not have new
infrastructure and other projects because the Local Government Code bar a local
government unit to implement them. It could only function through the reenacted budget – as provided
by Section 323 of the LGC - by funding those salaries and wages of existing
positions, statutory and contractual obligations, and essential operating
expenses authorized in the annual and supplemental budgets for the preceding
year.
Any corrupt mayor or a governor in any part of the
Philippines could be marginalized in his or her preparation for the next
election in 2025 without the 20% development projects (Section 287 LGC). A P1.3
billion, for example, means absence of P260 million or P780 million in three years’ term.
Customarily, 20 % s.o.p (euphemism of cut) from the project contractors means P156
million lost from that P780 million projects.
During the inauguration of Fernandez and her three
councilors’ Jigz Seen, Dennis Canto, and Michael Fernandez as newly minted
elective officials, I jocularly told one of the Dads that “You got three
regular Councilors plus the ex-officio members of the Presidents of the
Liga ng mga Barangays and the Samahang Kabataan Federation, that’s five. Lim
got seven Dads and you need to buy through sums (that’s million of pesos or
more my dear readers) or give the vulnerable Dad supervision of some projects
(where the Councilor can get his S.O.P or share from the contractor) to make
him susceptible and makes the political equation six-six”.
It means Mayor Fernandez’s allied lawmakers become six
versus the six Councilors of Lim that transforms Vice Mayor Dean Brian L. Kua -
the Veem and cousin of Fernandez – to become a tie breaker in favor of the new
Mayor’ programs that need legislative approval.
Now let’s go back to what happened a few days ago. What
prompted the defection of Coquia and Fernandez (a best friend of opposition
stalwart solon Celia Lim - the mother of the former Hizonner)? Was it because
of the chutzpah of the mayor through quip
pro quo (like psychological,
spiritual, or financial, salamabit!) or was the duo was just patriotic to serve
the Dagupenos whose more than two thousands of scholars have been groping in
the dark for their tuition fees from the public coffer.
Or they were just there because the LGC says that members of
the LDC are all the councilors of a local government unit and they should
attend its meeting. Or their presence had the imprimatur from the opposition
leader Councilor Red E. Mejia and former mayor Lim’s mother Councilor Celia Lim
because earlier in their session Department of Interior & Local Government
Provincial Director Virgilio Sison warned them that an administrative case of dereliction
of duty looms if they – the vengeful-we-hate-Belen Fernandez majority
opposition councilors - will not approve this year’s budget?
My broadcaster friend Harold Barcelona doubted the duo defected
because in the January 18 session of the SB, Coquia and Fernandez still
supported the ally -solons under former Mayor Lim.
When he saw the LDC meeting showing Mayor Fernandez
supporters in the LDC applauded Coquia and Fernandez’s presence, former
Councilor Chito Samson – an ally of the mayor – quipped on his Facebook
account: Salamat Sa Diyos natauhan din si Konsi Alvin
Coquia at Konsi Malou Fernandez.
Hours later he lamented: Haizt
photo ops lang pala hahaha akala ko new majority na sa SP sorry na naman ang
Dagupan.
We can ascertain finally if the duo abandoned the opposition
if we could see them collaborate with the proposed ordinances of Mayor
Fernandez and not only of the budget’s approval as pressure and warning from
the DILG threatened them like a Sword of Damocles.
READ MY OTHER BLOG:
How Mayor, Guv, Solon Steal to Fund Their Election
MORTZ C. ORTIGOZA
I am a twenty years seasoned Op-Ed Political Writer in various newspapers and Blogger exposing government corruptions, public officials's idiocy and hypocrisies, and analyzing local and international issues. I have a master’s degree in Public Administration and professional government eligibility. I taught for a decade Political Science and Economics in universities in Metro Manila and cities of Urdaneta, Pangasinan and Dagupan. Follow me on Twitter @totoMortz or email me at totomortz@yahoo.com.
No comments:
Post a Comment