Thursday, November 08, 2007 Pelaez to fight if court order is subverted
BUSINESSMAN Efrain Pelaez Jr.’s lawyers are ready to go to court if the Lapu-Lapu City Government circumvents a court order by issuing a closure order against any of the businessman’s shops.
“We will do everything to defend the rule of law and the dignity of the court that issued the writ (of preliminary injunction),” said lawyer Joan Largo.
Largo said Regional Trial Court (RTC) Judge Toribio Quiwag’s writ of preliminary injunction may not have the words “closure order” on it, but it does stress that all parties are “directed to strictly observe the status quo pending the final adjudication of the main case.”
”In this country, the definition of status quo is settled. There is no other definition,” she said.
Moreover, she pointed out, the writ prohibits not only the demolition of Pelaez’s structures but also “any and all acts prayed for by the plaintiff.”
”This isn’t just about demolition. This isn’t about closure. This is about everything that they can conjure up,” she said.
And contrary to what Mayor Arturo Radaza’s lawyers have claimed, Largo said the coverage against closure orders was sought in both the original and supplemental complaint against the mayor.
She showed a copy of the original complaint and highlighted provisions that sought protection from the enforcement of “ultra vires notices,” including the Sept. 17, 2007 notice of closure issued by City Attorney Vicente Lim.
The complaint also prayed for protection from any acts that will cause the “displacement of legitimate tenants” of Pelaez’s establishments.
Largo admitted that while Quiwag’s Oct. 25, 2007 order denied their motion to include notices of closure, both the pleading and the resultant ruling referred to the Oct. 11, 2007 temporary restraining order.
Expired
“That (TRO) had already expired,” she said, adding that the writ of preliminary injunction is separate and distinct.
She lamented how Radaza’s camp is resorting to tactics that confuse the public, referring to the one-page advertisement City Hall placed in Sun.Star Cebu yesterday.
Pelaez, in a separate interview, asked why Radaza paid for an ad on the status quo order but, until now, has remained silent on allegations that the City Government bought overpriced computers worth about P23 million.
The case on the purchase is with the Office of the Ombudsman-Visayas.
He also pointed out that Radaza has never issued any statement regarding his alleged involvement in the Asean Summit lamppost controversy.
The mayor was preventively suspended for the incident and was only able to return to office after the May 14 elections.
Quiwag, in a ruling dated Oct. 27, issued a writ of preliminary injunction against the City Government to “preserve the status quo” pending the final decision on the main case.
He explained that there are only two requirements for the issuance of a preliminary injunction—the existence of a right that needs to be protected and the fact that without the writ, a person’s right can be threatened. (KNR)
