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Monday, August 18, 2003
Mayor, carrying gun, boxed me: cabbie
CEBU -- A cab driver will decide Monday whether to press charges or not against Cebu City Mayor Tomas Osmeņa, whom he accused of hitting him over a parking violation shortly before midnight Sunday.
Dominador C. Mulleon Jr., 21, reported to the Fuente Police Station that around 11:45 Sunday night, the mayor scolded him for double-parking in front of the Cebu Doctors' Hospital on Osmeņa Blvd.
Osmeņa could not be reached for comment.
Asked in the 2001 electoral campaign about a May 1990 incident in which he allegedly scattered a vendor's wares and trampled them in Lahug, the mayor said he wanted to set an example of good leadership.
"If nobody follows your mayor, he's inutile. He has lost his ability to govern. That is bad for the city," he said in a March 2001 symposium.
Both Mulleon and Ronald Cabaņero, 32, a fellow driver with the Mabuhay taxi company, stressed they were sure it was Osmeņa who dealt with Mulleon.
"Nakainom man (He seemed inebriated)," Cabaņero said.
He said there were at least 12 taxis double-parked in front of the hospital when the mayor arrived.
While other cab drivers swiftly moved their vehicles, Mulleon found himself face to face with Osmeņa, who asked for his license and ordered him to move the taxi, a white Toyota Corolla (GVY-377).
Mulleon backed up. When he stepped out, however, the mayor was not pleased and ordered him to move again, allegedly slamming the cab's door before Mulleon could get his right hand out of harm's way.
The next time Mulleon got out of the taxi was when the blows allegedly started.
"Sunod gani, pagtarong og parking (Next time, park properly)," Cabaņero heard Osmeņa tell Mulleon.
Cabaņero said the mayor grabbed Mulleon by his shirt before the blows started. The entire incident took less than 30 minutes, he added, and the mayor had only one bodyguard with him.
Mulleon told SPO4 Franquilina Cenit, who took down the "incident report," that the mayor hit him in the left jaw, then kept slugging at his chest, all the while holding a handgun in his right hand.
The mayor did not aim the gun or threaten him, Mulleon added.
"It's your choice whether to press charges or not," Cenit told Mulleon. She asked him to return to the Fuente Police Station today with a medical certificate, so police investigators can help decide whether he should file a complaint for slight physical injuries or any other offense.
Mulleon said doctors at the government-run Cebu City Medical Center took note of the bruise on the fingers of his right hand, but could not see any discoloration on his jaw.
A temporary resident of the pier area, Mulleon said he did not vote in the 2001 elections, nor recall who his parents voted for. He began working right after high school.
About two hours before the alleged confrontation, Mulleon was intercepted in Lapu-Lapu City for trying to move into a no-entry street.
He didn't say whether the night's incidents will make him heed traffic laws more, but he'll consult his parents about whether to press charges.
"Gipakauwawan ko niya (The mayor humiliated me)," the 21-year-old said, his voice quavering. "Naglagot gyud ko (Of course, I'm angry.)" IDA |
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