Saturday, August 30, 2008 Capitol asks Comelec: Resolve Tudela case for peace’s sake
THE failure of the Commission on Elections (Comelec) to act on the rivalry between Rogelio Baquerfo and Demetrio Granada in Tudela of Camotes, Cebu is the reason for the tension gripping the town.
Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia issued that statement yesterday through lawyer Rory Jon Sepulveda, Capitol consultant on information and revenue generation.
“The legal team deliberated on the Tudela problem. Based on information from the news, all these problems and tension can be attributed to only one thing—the unfortunate failure of the Comelec to act,” Sepulveda said in a press conference yesterday.
Granada has asked the court to issue a writ of execution, after it declared him the winner in a judicial recount of votes.
But Sepulveda explained that the Regional
Trial Court (RTC) of Danao lost jurisdiction over the case when it turned the records over to the Comelec.
It is the Comelec alone that can grant or withhold the writ of execution, he added.
Baquerfo’s camp also asked the Comelec to issue a mandatory injunction while he appeals RTC Judge Edito Enemecio’s ruling that Granada won the mayoralty race by 21 votes.
But the Comelec has failed to rule on the motion for mandatory injunction, Sepulveda said.
Both motions—Granada’s, for a writ of execution; Baquerfo’s, for mandatory injunction—have yet to be resolved by the Comelec.
“We are in limbo just because the constitutional body tasked to resolve disputes such as this until today has failed to exercise their obligation to the people of Tudela,” Sepulveda said.
He said the Tudela conflict has affected the delivery of basic services to the town.
It is reportedly affecting the province as well.
“We are trying to promote Cebu as good place to do invest in, but it (the Tudela situation) is giving the impression that there is something wrong with the province,” Sepulveda said.
When asked if he feared that Daanbantayan, with the mayoralty tug-of-war between Sun Shimura and Augusto del Corro, is going the way of Tudela, Sepulveda answered: “Precisely. This occurrence should not happen again.”
He said a Comelec ruling is the “only solution” to the tension.
Once the Comelec decides, Sepulveda said, not even the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) or the governor can interfere anymore.
DILG Undersecretary Austere Panadero earlier issued a letter to Regional Director Pedro Noval saying the department still recognizes Baquerfo as mayor, due to the lack of a writ of execution.
However, the lawyer of Granada yesterday sent Noval a letter asking the DILG to “reconsider” its position.
Reacting to news reports that quoted Noval as saying that the DILG plans to go to Tudela to let Baquerfo resume his post as mayor, lawyers Jorge John Cane and Guiller Ceniza said such pronouncements were “uncalled for and constitute subjudice on a matter that is pending consideration before the court.”
They said that if the DILG will “force mayor Granada to vacate his present position” at this time, the department will be violating the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act, or Republic Act (RA) 3019.
“Going with Mr. Baquerfo to Tudela in order to eject Mr. Granada is partisanship of the highest order and may force mayor Granada to file a case against you for violation of RA 3019,” the lawyers’ letter read.
They challenged the DILG to secure an injunction against Granada and accused the department of failing to give Granada due process of law.
But while Cane and Ceniza claimed that Governor Garcia’s support lies with Granada, Sepulveda clarified yesterday that the governor is not taking sides.
Sepulveda said Garcia has ordered him to send the Comelec a letter as soon as possible to ask it to resolve the issue. (KAB)
