BACOLOD City Councilor Dindo Ramos will file criminal complaints today against his fellow councilor, Claudio “Kalaw” Puentevella, who punched him last month.
A complaint on direct assault and disturbance of proceedings against Puentevella will be filed before the City Prosecutor’s Office.
“With the resolution excluding him from the session hall and reprimanding him is clear that there’s a disturbance in the proceedings and it is penalized under the Revised Penal Code,” he said.
He added he is now gathering the affidavits of his witnesses which include the four councilors, who were in the session hall during the incident.
On September 12, the members of the August body were discussing the request of the mayor for an authority to sign on the proposed contract between the IPM Construction and Development Corporation (IPM-CDC) and the City Government for the construction of Bacolod City Cell No. 2 in the sanitary landfill in Barangay Felisa.
This led to an exchange between Puentevella and Ramos which quickly escalated into a heated argument, prompting the city vice mayor to call for a recess.
Two days after the incident, Puentevella issued an apology, but Ramos said Puentevella only apologized to the public and justified his action.
Ramos also said he is preparing documents to file an administrative complaint against Puentevella.
He said he will file oppression and grave misconduct complaints before the Office of Ombudsman in Cebu City.
“I believe these are strong cases and as a lawyer, I will not file a case with no chance or with no merits. Otherwise, it will encourage other councilors not only in Bacolod City but also in other cities and municipalities to hurt their fellow councilors and that would be a bad message if this case will be dismissed,” Ramos added.