"(The charter change proposal) is like a week-old sh*t from an un-flushed toilet of a congressman suffering from colon cancer." -- Sen. Panfilo Lacson, July 17, 2017
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ONE day after Cebu City Mayor Tomas Osmeña pulled out CTTO enforcers from Mambaling, where construction of an underpass has been causing traffic snarls, he sent them back. He had to. Under the law, it was the local government's job and Tomas heads the LGU. Failure or refusal to perform his work would risk committing "dereliction of duty."
Victor Caindec, LTO regional director, had baited the mayor with an offer to solve the traffic mess on condition Tomas would resign. It was a ridiculous and illegal offer: public office cannot be the subject of a bet. And it was never formalized and terms set by Caindec were not complied with by the mayor.
Tomas pushed through with his move anyway. Monday, July 16, no city traffic enforcer was in sight. Neither was anyone from LTO sent by Caindec. Total chaos on the Mambaling road. Tomas gave in. Caindec though also came out as a villain who put one over Tomas but at the expense of motorists and commuters.
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Was LTO chief bluffing?
Not answered is the question whether LTO's Caindec really knows how to untangle the Mambaling "Gordian knot." Does he have the answer to the crisis there?
Even the mayor was only partly skeptical. How else explain the door that he left open. What he would do for Caindec if the LTO chief would succeed: let him handle other traffic chokepoints.
Caindec admitted he had no background on traffic. As a specific subject, none, he said (in a January 7, 2015 interview with CDN); as a management field, yes.
Caindec's work experience had been mainly related to marketing and sales. His stint with City Hall as Citom chief was brief and less than spectacular.
How did then mayor Mike Rama recruit him? "Me and my big mouth," he said. That big mouth apparently has been working overtime during the last few days.
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What 'no-el' means
It was House Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez who announced Monday (July 16) they were planning to use people's initiative to amend the Constitution so that elections in 2019 could be put off (actually, cancelled).
Who else could feel alluded to by Sen. Ping Lacson's blast at the proposal
to speed up the cha-cha by not holding elections? The plan is the "sh*t" but who is the congressman who owns the metaphorical un-flushed toilet?
Why does the crap stink? No elections or "No-el" would mean a disruption of the democratic system, extending the term of 12 senators and all other elected officials or appointing replacements by executive order.
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