THE City Council of Davao City on Tuesday deferred its concurrence on the appointment of lawyer Zuleika T. Lopez as city administrator.
The city councilors have questioned the qualification of Lopez to hold such position, with Vice Mayor Rodrigo Duterte leading local lawmakers in grilling the woman appointee of her daughter, Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte.
Vice Mayor Duterte requested Councilor Victorio Advincula Jr. to temporarily preside over the proceedings so the vice mayor can personally participate in the discussion on the floor.
Vice Mayor Duterte said Lopez’s previous posts in government do not qualify her to become city administrator.
Lopez was a graft investigator at the Office of the Ombudsman and was a City Council secretary before Mayor Duterte appointed her as city administrator.
Lopez also previously worked as information officer at the University of Philippines-Mindanao.
But Vice Mayor Duterte maintained that the post of a city administrator requires managerial or administrative experience in government for at least five years.
"Your (previous) posts do not convert into managerial or administrative positions," Vice Mayor Duterte told Lopez. He also questioned Lopez for her alleged cold treatment among employees at City Hall, which the latter denied.
Councilors Melchor Quitain and Jimmy Dureza also took turns in questioning Lopez's qualifications in the grilling session that lasted for over an hour.
To support her credentials, Lopez even bragged that she was awarded the best employee when she was still with the Ombudsman. This, however, failed to convince the local lawmakers.
The City Council intends to grill Lopez some more and decided to defer its confirmation on appointment of the lady lawyer as suggested by Councilor Conrado Baluran, chair of the committee on appointment. (Charles Raymond A. Maxey)