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Saturday, November 12, 2005
Peace council questions cardinal by mistake
Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia was visibly irked at the Regional Peace and Order Council (RPOC) secretariat for sending a letter to Cebu Archbishop Ricardo Cardinal Vidal requesting him to explain his absence in council meetings.
The letter to Vidal also asked whether he is still interested to remain a member of the RPOC.
Garcia, who presided over the RPOC meeting in Mandaue City yesterday, urged the secretariat to review the minutes of previous meetings, saying she doesn’t recall appointing Cardinal Vidal as a member of the RPOC.
The governor expressed her “deep frustration and disappointment” in the secretariat’s sending the letter.
In a letter to Estrella Avena, head of RPOC secretariat, Cardinal Vidal apologized for his failure to attend or send a representative to the meetings.
Since work keeps him busy, the archbishop said in his letter that he is withdrawing his membership in the council.
Garcia told the council that the cardinal approached her in a gathering in Argao town and said he was not going to continue his membership.
P500 fine
She also said that she was not informed about the secretariat’s move to send similar letters to other officials.
Resolution 14 of the RPOC, which was passed during its Aug. 19 meeting in Dumaguete City, requires RPOC members to pay a fine of P500 for every meeting they miss or fail to send a representative.
The governor showed frustration over the secretariat’s failure to give her a copy of the agenda of the meeting beforehand.
The letter was part of the agenda of yesterday’s assembly, which Garcia read only during the meeting.
Maj. Gen. Emmanuel Teodosio, chief of the Central Command, moved for the drafting of a “properly worded letter” to the cardinal.
Garcia was also irked at the inclusion of the request of the Centennial Force Foundation for accreditation by the RPOC, saying the matter would have been addressed immediately had she read it before the meeting.
Representatives of the National Police Commission, which serves as secretariat of the RPOC, apologized to her.
Garcia marks this month the first year since her appointment as head of the Central Visayas RPOC. (AAG)
(November 12, 2005 issue)
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