Family figures in mishap after southern beach trip

A FAMILY of 14 from Cebu City was injured after the sports utility vehicle they were riding fell into a ditch in Barangay Poblacion West in the southern town of Moalboal last Saturday night.

PO2 Romeo Legaspi Jr. of the Moalboal Police Station said the accident happened at 7 p.m. when the white Galloper (MDX-554) driven by Edwardo Badayos lost control.

3 men caught for cop’s death

THE police arrested last Friday night three men who were allegedly involved in the fatal shooting of a policeman in Barangay Looc, Danao City.

Supt. Resty Santos, Danao City police chief, identified the suspects as Ronstel Casas, 27; Rollie Capin, 31; and Brave Alvaro, 19.

Police probe shooting of Kalunasan woman, stabbing of tire salesman

AN unknown man shot and killed a woman in Barangay Kalunasan, Cebu City last Friday night.

Jovelyn Pepito Casida, 28, died after being shot in the eye allegedly by the driver of a motorcycle she was riding at 6:30 p.m.

Danao policeman shot 7 times, dies

A POLICE officer died after five men repeatedly shot him near an illegal cockfight arena in Barangay Looc, Danao City late yesterday afternoon.

SPO3 Jose Relampagos, who was assigned to the Tuburan Police Station, was shot seven times in his head and body.

Mayoralty candidate in Tuburan won’t face raps

DEFEATED Tuburan, Cebu mayoralty candidate Rose Marie Suezo and her running mate Daphne Lagon will not face trial for allegedly employing six armed men as bodyguards.

Cebu got most poll problems

CEBU Province has the most number of defective Precinct Count Optical Scan (PCOS) machines in the entire Central Visayas.

Of the total 215 defective PCOS machines in Region 7, Cebu has 134.

Radaza wants separate province for Mactan

NEWLY elected Rep. Aileen Radaza (Lapu-Lapu City, lone district) announced she will file a bill creating Mactan Province, saying this will hasten economic growth in the island.

Young to protest poll defeat

LIKE Rep. Tomas Osmeña (Cebu City, south district), Vice Mayor Joy Augustus Young won’t concede defeat to Councilor Edgardo Labella who was proclaimed vice mayor in last Monday’s elections last Thursday night.

Young said the Bando Osmeña Pundok Kauswagan (BOPK) will file a protest before the Commission on Elections (Comelec) against the results for both the mayoral and vice mayoral races.

Call center official ‘tries to bribe’ police, arrested

THE vice president for external affairs of a call center company that was raided on suspicion of being involved in an online scam was arrested late Thursday afternoon for allegedly trying to bribe police.

Mayor’s executive asst. denies certifying funds are available

THE executive assistant of Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama denied she was certifying the availability of funds when she signed a document for the clearing of the Bus Rapid Transport (BRT) route at the South Road Properties (SRP).

Councilor Margarita Osmeña, the chairperson of the committee on budget and finance, questioned the authority of executive assistant Nenita Fernandez to sign the document.

2 persons face child abuse raps for jewelry theft

FOR allegedly instructing an 11-year-old boy to steal his grandmother’s jewelry worth P170,000, two persons will face trial.

The Cebu City Prosecutor’s Office charged Noel and Marlinda Oporto with violating Republic Act 7610, or the Special Protection of Children against Abuse, Exploitation and Discrimination Act.

Gwen makes it

IT WAS a huff-and-puff race and Gwendolyn Garcia crossed the finish line ahead of Geraldine Yapha by a few strides.

At 4:05 p.m. yesterday at the Capitol social hall, the Provincial Board of Canvassers raised the hands of the suspended governor to proclaim her winner in the congressional contest in Cebu’s third district.

Labella beats Young by 184 votes

CAMBINOCOT provided the answer to the question that hung for hours.

Who between incumbent Vice Mayor Joy Augustus Young and Councilor Edgardo Labella won the Cebu City vice mayorship?

One Cebu discusses poll-related events, consults former Comelec exec

ONE Cebu gubernatorial candidate, Rep. Pablo John Garcia (Cebu, third district), met allied mayors yesterday to discuss the results of the May 13 elections.

Garcia said they are gathering information and consulting mayors before deciding on his next move. He said he will also consult his counsel, former Commission on Elections (Comelec) commissioner Gregorio Larrazabal.

Quiño wins seat again

THE Commission on Election (Comelec) proclaimed reelectionist Mayor Joel Quiño winner in the Compostela mayoralty race at 1 a.m. yesterday, while supporters of Ritchie Wagas held a rally outside the town hall.

The Municipal Board of Canvassers also proclaimed Quiño's running mate, Rosalinda Abing, and his brother, Esperidion, as first councilor. The other seven winners for councilor were also proclaimed.

‘Psychic’ runs off with valuables

A WOMAN from Barangay Guadalupe, Cebu City lost P49,000 in cash and P131,000 worth of jewelry to a woman who posed as a psychic.

Flordeliza Santillan of Sitio Sudina, Barangay Guadalupe told Sun.Star Superbalita that she entrusted her money and jewelry to a woman named Irene, who introduced herself as a psychic from Siquijor.

Teachers await payment

THE more than 1,770 public school teachers in Cebu City who served as board of election inspectors (BEIs) during last Monday’s elections have yet to receive their P4,000 honorarium.

They thought they would get it immediately because Commission on Elections (Comelec) chairperson Sixto Brillantes Jr. had announced that they would.

More voters turned out last Monday

VOTER turnout in midterm elections is usually lower than presidential elections, but that is not the case in Cebu Province this year.

According to Commission on Elections 7 Director Temie Lambino, voter turnout was around 85 percent, even if some election districts have yet to complete their proclamation.

Call center raided; police question 120 employees

A CALL center at the Cebu Business Park was raided by the Anti-Cybercrime Group of the Cebu Provincial Police Office at midnight yesterday.

Interface Techno-Phil Inc. (ITI), which is reportedly owned by American national Sylvia Norton, is accused of deceiving its customers and giving them additional charges without basis.

Cops sued for arrest of boy, 17

FOR allegedly arresting a 17-year-old boy who violated the election gun ban, the chief of Carmen Police Station and three other police officers were charged before the Cebu Provincial Prosecutor’s Office.

Senior Insp. Audie Pelayre, SPO3 Renerio Masucol Jr., PO3 Edgardo Papaya, and PO3 Ronald Nuñez was charged with violation of Sections 21 and 22 of Republic Act (RA) 9344, or the Juvenile Justice and Welfare Act of 2006 in relation to Section 11 of the Rule on Juveniles in Conflict with the Law.

Duranos’ ‘practical politics’ worked well

THE “practical politics” of the Durano clan in Danao City apparently worked.

With presumptive Cebu governor-elect Hilario Davide III getting about 40, 000 votes ahead of his rival, Pablo John Garcia, in the fifth district, Danao City Vice Mayor-elect Ramon “Red” Durano VI said Bakud Party kept its commitment to the Liberal Party (LP) by delivering substantial votes for Davide and his running-mate, acting Gov. Agnes Magpale.

Alayon-ruled council to cooperate

THE Alayon Party will not be obstructionists to the administration of Talisay City mayor-elect Johnny delos Reyes despite getting the majority seats in the City Council during the last May 13 elections, an official said yesterday.

But for Talisay City councilor-elect Doroteo Emit, if Delos Reyes’s administration will create proposals that will not be beneficial to the city’s constituents, he and his allies in the City Council will not hesitate to block it.

Witness surfaces

THE Theft and Robbery Section of the Cebu City Police Office (CCPO) said the unidentified burglar that stole jewelries from an icon at the Redemptorist Church might have done the crime during the mass at 5 p.m. Tuesday.

TRS Chief William Alicaba said they invited one witness, a candle maker who first noticed the missing jewelries.

Delay worries Gwen's camp

DELAYS in the results from Balamban and Tuburan prevented canvassers from confirming last night whether suspended Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia or Pinamungajan Mayor Geraldine Yapha won the congressional seat in Cebu province's third district.

The governor's daughter, lawyer Christina Frasco, said in a press statement that Garcia "pending her proclamation, will soon be congresswoman of the third district of Cebu."

Ballot box's storage an issue in close contest

THE results from three ballot boxes will determine who will be Cebu City's vice mayor and three councilors.

So when one of them was found kept away from the others, the camp of reelected Mayor Michael Rama questioned the integrity of its contents.

Rama wants to move some department heads

HEADS may soon roll at Cebu City Hall.

A day after he was proclaimed reelected by the Commission on Elections (Comelec), Mayor Michael Rama said he will be revamping some assignments at City Hall.

Quiet Danao polls encourage officer

THE Commission on Elections (Comelec) has reported a "very orderly and peaceful" election in Danao City, in contrast to its reputation for the use of "guns, goons and gold" in previous elections.

"When I was told that I will be assigned to Danao City for the May 13 elections, I was a little bit apprehensive," said lawyer Enerio Ocariza Jr., the election officer and chairman of the City Board of Canvassers.

Winners told to clean up

THE Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) in Central Visayas called on newly-elected public officials to clean up and gather campaign paraphernalia that were put up during the campaign period.

Random manual audit shows some differences

THE votes cast for senators in clustered precincts in Barangay Talamban, Cebu City where Random Manual Audit (RAM) was conducted showed some differences from the topnotchers in the national canvassing of the mid-term elections.

Reluyas to contest results in court

EVEN before the election protest filed after the May 2010 polls is resolved, rival candidates in San Fernando, Cebu will likely have a face-off in court anew.

The husband of former mayor Lakambini “Neneth” Reluya said Wednesday that they will file an election protest against Mayor-elect Antonio “Abe” Canoy and his son and runningmate Micko.