IT'S not arson.
This was the result of the investigation conducted by the Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP) following a blaze that hit one of the rooms of the Isabela Municipal Hall last week.
Fire Officer 2 Henry Nicolas Jr., arson investigator, said the fire at the rest area within the office of Mayor Irene Montilla was accidental and triggered by an electrical short circuit.
Investigation showed that the electrical wiring got soaked since there is a hole at the roof and it was raining on the day the fire happened.
Water is considered a conductor and when it trickles to active electrical wiring or outlet, a short circuit is inevitable, the investigator said.
The initial amount of damage was pegged at P100,000 but the BFP personnel is still waiting for the affidavit of loss that Montilla will execute since it is necessary to determine the actual damage cost.
For her part, Montilla said the area that was gutted by fire is where she eats her meal when she is at the town hall.
Montilla said there were no important documents kept at the area. It only has a refrigerator and religious items, and is also used to store her medicines.
During the incident, no one was inside the town hall because it occurred after office hours, Montilla said, adding that the repair and rewiring of the damaged area could not be done yet due to the lack of budget.
The town’s 2022 budget amounting to P270 million remained unapproved by the Sangguniang Bayan (SB).
At present, the town is operating under a reenacted budget which is difficult to meet the town's financial responsibilities.
Montilla earlier complained before the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG), to Governor Eugenio Jose Lacson, and Provincial Administrator Rayfrando Diaz II, among others, the inaction of the town council on the proposed annual budget.
In fact, DILG-Western Visayas has already recommended for her to institute action that will compel the council to come up with a notarized explanation as to why up to this day, they have not approved the appropriation ordinance that will grant the legal utilization of the town’s 2022 budget.
Fifth District Rep. Marilou Arroyo provided a budget for the refurbishment of the town hall but it did not include that for the electrical rewiring, Montilla noted.
“We were considering adjusting the program of work and prioritizing the need for electrical rewiring," she said.
The mayor said that she will not personally suffer from the non-approval of the town's budget but it is the people who deserve adequate government service.
"Our need for funds is glaringly obvious and we cannot just throw those funds into the canal," she lamented, saying that the town cannot even reach P105 million under a reenacted budget.
The non-approval of the budget also affects the operation of the Commission on Elections (Comelec) since the municipal government has allocated P500,000 for the elections, the town's health services, and capital outlay, among others.*