STO. Tomas Mayor Johnny Sambo on Thursday, April 4, challenged anew former elected officials of this town to explain to Tomasians the past administration’s failure to settle the nine-year electric bill arrears with the Pampanga III Electric Cooperative (Pelco) Central Luzon.
Refusing to argue with the “baseless accusations” thrown at him, Sambo instead urged the elected officials during the administration of former Mayor Lito Naguit to disclose to Tomasians the truth behind Pelco-3 debt amounting to P29,114,677.68 left by the past administration.
Sambo said the arrears were accumulated during the nine-year leadership of Naguit, who is the brother of incumbent Councilor and vice-mayoralty bet Jhong Naguit, and then vice-mayors Gloria Ninang Ronquillo (2007-2013), who is gunning for the mayoralty post, and Mark Louie Arceo (2013-2016) who is seeking a seat at the Sangguniang Bayan.
Ronquillo is the wife of former mayor Romeo “Ninong” Ronquillo while Arceo is the son of former mayor Lucas Arceo. Romeo and Lucas, together with Lito, have publicly declared their alliance in a bid to unseat Sambo as mayor of this town.
“If they wanted to join forces against me, that’s on them. But they must first answer their obligations to Tomasians to disclose the truth behind the huge debt left behind by the administration of Lito Naguit, and his then-vice mayors Ninang Ronquillo and Mark Louie Arceo,” Sambo said.
Based on the Pelco- Central Luzon statement of report presented by Sambo to Sun.Star Pampanga, the municipal hall arrears stretch back from July 2008 to June 2016, wherein the total principal amounts to P14,910,853.65 and have accumulated interests amounting to P14,203,824.03.
Sambo said his administration has already paid about P700,000 from the said electric bills arrears, aside from regularly updating the monthly dues of the municipal hall for almost three years.
“The local government is able to somehow lessen the arrears by paying monthly, but I also have to pay my monthly consumables or our electricity supply will be cut-off,” Sambo said.
Sambo wondered over the Naguit administration’s failure to settle electric bills regularly when his administration is able to update on a monthly basis the municipal hall’s consumed electric service.
“I cannot understand why their arrears ballooned to almost P30-million. In my two years, I can proudly say that our account is updated despite the increase in street lights. I believe they owe Tomasians the explanation and I suggest that they use their time onstage to do that instead of throwing baseless accusations against me,” he said.