Lapu LP mayoral bet ‘not afraid’ to face estafa

LAPU-LAPU City congressional candidate Angel Rodriguez said he will file estafa charges against mayoralty candidate Efrain “Jun” Pelaez Jr., whom he accused of failing to account for the money he gave for their coalition’s campaign.

Rodriguez, in a press conference, said he and Pelaez agreed to create a joint bank account where they can deposit their contributions.

Talisay candidates get notices from Comelec

MEMBERS of the Liberal Party (LP) in Talisay City said they are willing to comply with the order of the Commission on Elections (Comelec) to remove illegally placed campaign posters.

The Comelec Cebu Provincial Office recently sent notices to candidates running in different local government units in Cebu who reportedly violated an election provision after posting campaign materials in non-designated areas.

Mike skips nod of City Council

CEBU City Mayor Michael Rama bypassed the City Council when he signed the contract for the P50-million project meant to clear the Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) route at the South Road Properties (SRP).

The Council learned about this yesterday during an executive session, where they were told that Rama had signed the contract with the contractor without authorization from the legislative body.

Girl, 9, found dead in Lapu, raped by construction worker

A NINE-YEAR-OLD girl was found dead on a grassy lot some 100 meters away from the police station in Barangay Gun-ob, Lapu-Lapu City yesterday morning.

A construction worker admitted raping Ella Lasala, but he denied killing her.

Village officials ‘unaware’ of presence of cybersex den in their area

LABANGON Barangay Captain Victor Buendia said they were shocked upon learning that a cybersex den has been operating in their village.

But Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama said Barangay Labangon officials should still be accountable for not knowing about the existence of the alleged cybersex den in their area.

18 pregnant women test positive of HIV

EIGHTEEN pregnant women in Cebu have tested positive of HIV (Human Immunodeficiency Virus), which causes Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome (AIDS), between 2010 and 2012.

Rama denies conducting loyalty check

SOME Cebu City department heads were surprised when Mayor Michael Rama called them to a meeting last Wednesday and asked them who they’d support for mayor in next month’s elections.

“He told us that those who cannot support him politically can get out,” City Attorney Joseph Bernaldez said.

Public assured of no brownouts on election day

THREE power utilities yesterday assured the public in a meeting with the Commission on Elections (Comelec) that there will be no power outage during the elections on May 13.

The meeting was called to finalize election contingency measures.

Couple shot dead inside their house in Lapu-Lapu

A COMPUTER technician was killed while his girlfriend was wounded after they were shot by an unidentified assailant inside her house in Sitio Lawis, Barangay Babag, Lapu-Lapu City last Wednesday night.

Karl Philip Mangubat, 24, died from a gunshot wound in his head while Gina Virtudazo, 24, a production worker, suffered a gunshot wound in her right foot.

Security set for today’s LP rally

ACTING Cebu City Police Office (CCPO) Director Mariano Natuel Jr. said their security preparations for the visit of President Benigno Simeon Aquino III today are all set.

Road and area security were already set as over 100 crowd dispersal management unit members are allotted for today’s activity.

Bomba staff faces indecency raps

FOR allegedly publishing obscene articles and nude photos of women, eight employees of a Manila-based tabloid will face trial after they were charged by the Cebu City Prosecutor’s Office.

Probers also eye business angle

ASIDE from politics and a family conflict, police are looking into a business-related angle as another motive in the murder of Pio V. Corpus, Masbate mayor’s lover Crisanta Lauro.

Acting Cebu City Police Office (CCPO) Director Mariano Natuel Jr. said Lauro was also engaged in real estate business.

Town dad, 4 others face graft charges

FORMER Moalboal, Cebu mayor Yvonne Cabaron and four other town hall officials are facing charges before the anti-graft office over the alleged illegal realignment of public funds worth P.5 million in 2008.

Diaper ad ‘distasteful,’ Sotto says

A BILL declaring the commemoration of the Battle of Mactan as a national holiday is up for submission when the Senate convenes in July.

Sen. Vicente Sotto III told reporters yesterday the bill will be the first piece of legislation that he will file.

Give my kids back

FORMER Placer, Surigao del Norte mayor Charry Mangacop visited Cebu City yesterday and asked the police to solve the death of his estranged wife, Crisanta Lauro, whose gunmen have yet to be identified.

He also pleaded with Mayor Herminigildo Betonio III, who was living with Lauro, to return his children, the properties that his wife allegedly took, and his wife’s remains.

Council questions P50M for BRT route

A P50-MILLION project that is meant to clear the Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) route in the South Road Properties (SRP) was questioned by the City Council yesterday.

Cebu City Councilor Margarita Osmeña said that the Department of Engineering and Public Works (DEPW) prepared a program of works and estimates (Powe), as well as an approved budget contract for the project, on Feb. 26 without it passing through the council’s scrutiny.

We don’t have Joavan, just his guns

THE police confiscated guns and ammunition that are believed to be Joavan Fernandez’s.

The guns were seized from two men Manolito Sencil, 35, of Sitio Neighborhood, Tabunok, Talisay City, and Romy Ramos, 28, of Deca Homes Subdivision in Tungkil, Minglanilla who are alleged friends of Talisay Mayor Socrates Fernandez’s son.

Mayor’s foe calls anti-EQ campaign ‘total hypocrisy’

“TOTAL hypocrisy.”

This was how mayoralty bet Efrain “Jun” Pelaez Jr. described the action taken by his opponent, Lapu-Lapu City Mayor Paz Radaza, against a diaper commercial spoofing the Battle of Mactan.

DOH reports increase in HIV cases

THE number of persons with HIV (human immunodeficiency virus) in the country last February grew by 24 percent over the same month in 2012.

The Department of Health (DOH) National Epidemiology Center reported 339 new cases, which were confirmed and reported to the HIV and AIDS (Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome) Registry.

Magpale approves Gwen-less medals

CAPITOL’S supplier of medals has offered a new design, one that Acting Gov. Agnes Magpale has reportedly approved.

Instead of the image of suspended Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia, the new medals will be engraved with the images of Lapu-lapu, Magellan’s Cross, the Provincial Capitol and a map of Cebu.

Cybersex apartments in Cebu raided

CEBU CITY - Since she was desperate for money to feed her family, 18-year-old Pia (real name withheld) was persuaded by her friends to work as a sex slave for an Australian national last year.

“She earned P10,000 per month,” said an agent of the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) 7.

Police raid house of ex-NBI asset with assault case

TWO firearms, with reportedly revoked licenses, were surrendered to the Firearms and Explosives (FES) Office of the Police Regional Office (PRO) 7 yesterday afternoon.

A .38 Ruger and a Carbine, believed to be owned by Jose Primitivo “Joey” Cal, were surrendered by a certain Teodorico Adarna through lawyer Butch Cañares, according to Supt. Rex Derilo of the PRO 7.

Green, yellow parties hit road

LIBERAL Party (LP) and Bando Osmeña Pundok Kauswagan (BOPK) supporters can expect to share the road with Team Rama candidates and volunteers in green shirts during their rally in front of the Provincial Capitol tomorrow afternoon.

Team Rama will not be there to attend the LP’s activity. They have volunteered to help manage traffic in areas affected by the road closure, Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama, leader of Team Rama, announced yesterday.

Don’t resettle families in Sinsin’

THE Mines and Geosciences Bureau (MGB) of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources told the Cebu City Government not to relocate some 220 families to a City Government-owned property in the mountain barangay of Sinsin.

This is because the City’s property in the area is highly susceptible to landslides, said MGB 7 Director Loreto Alburo.

DOH issues warning vs. water from ATMs

HEALTH officials reminded the public to be wary of their sources of drinking water, as guidelines for regulation of the so-called Automated Tubig Machines (ATMs) are under review.

While Department of Health (DOH) Assistant Secretary Pauly Jean Rosell Ubial encouraged the public to stay hydrated, especially during summer season, she also urged them to check the sources of their drinking water.

Sandiganbayan asked: Defer issuance of arrest warrant

FORMER Cebu congresswoman Clavel Asas-Martinez and her six co-accused asked the Sandiganbayan to defer the issuance of an arrest warrant against them relative to the graft and malversation of public fund cases they are facing before the anti-graft court.

The respondents filed the motion for deferment, arguing, among others, that they have not yet received the official copy of the ombudsman’s order denying their motion for reconsideration.

Comelec takes action vs. ‘illegal’ posters

COMMISSION on Elections (Comelec) 7 Director Temie Lambino and Team Rama campaign manager, Councilor Jose Daluz III, were glad that Bando Osmeña Pundok Kauswagan (BOPK) are concerned about the legality of campaign materials all over the city.

However, Daluz said the move of BOPK to file a case against Team Rama is “hypocrisy.”

ALU-TUCP plans to push for pay hike

THE Associated Labor Union-Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (ALU-TUCP) announced it is considering filing a petition for a wage increase of between P70 and P80 for Central Visayas workers before the Labor Day celebration on May 1.

THE TUCP yesterday said while the minimum wage is P327 per day, the real take home pay, which is a worker’s capacity to buy goods and services, is only P216.21 because of several deductions in the payroll.

Cebuano runner finishes, unhurt

RICARDO Mansueto believes he will never forget his first Boston Marathon. He safely finished the race, considered the holy grail of running, yet the lone Cebuano runner also expects he will have flashbacks of the attack.

Mansueto, 32, is safe. The former physical education instructor and coach of the track and field team of the Sacred Heart School-Ateneo de Cebu finished the race in 3:10.

Masbate town mayor blames politics, lover’s marital woes for shooting

AN emotional Mayor Hermenigildo Betonio of Pio V. Corpus town, Masbate believed that the killing of his live-in partner, Crisanta “Maymay” Lauro, had something to do with politics and her estranged husband.

Betonio said that Lauro filed a petition before the Office of Muslim Affairs (OMA) to annul her marriage with Charry Mangako, former mayor of Placer, Surigao del Norte.