VICE Mayor Efren Guntrano “Gun-Gun” Gica of Dumanjug town, Cebu may face charges of direct assault for allegedly punching a barangay captain inside the Dumanjug Police Station last Saturday.
Candabong Barangay Captain Placido Mayonila, 44, alleged that he was punched in the face by Gica at 3:45 p.m. last Saturday. Mayonila said he was not aware of Gica’s reason for punching him.
Gica, however, denied hitting the village chief.
Mayonila claimed he was celebrating the barangay fiesta when the vice mayor arrived and tapped his shoulder hard thrice.
Mayonila said he decided to report the incident to the police because he got offended by Gica’s alleged actuation.
PO3 Dionesio Tagopa and PO1 Nestor Villanueva of the Dumanjug Police Station were at the desk when Mayonila filed the report.
According to Tagopa, Villanueva was recording Mayonila’s report on the police blotter when a commotion happened between the village chief and Gica, who also arrived at the police station.
Villanueva, on the other hand, said he did not see the alleged punching incident, but he noticed that the two were reportedly arguing. He said that when he checked out what happened, Gica was already on his way to board his vehicle.
Dumanjug Police Station Chief Cesar Misola, who was inside his office when the alleged incident happened, will verify the allegation. Mayonila, for his part, said there were two policemen who witnessed the alleged incident. He said he suffered a cut on his lip as a result of the punching incident.
He said he will pursue the filing of a complaint against Gica as he felt threatened by the vice mayor’s actuation.
Gica told Sun.Star Cebu he approached Mayonila before going back to his car after attending the barangay fiesta.
He said he tapped the village chief at the back thrice and greeted him on the celebration.
He said Mayonila, whom the vice mayor described as drunk, even shook his hand.
When Gica, who was with a former chief of Barangay Candabong, was about to leave, Mayonila allegedly shouted at him.
“Hala sige tabangi na ninyo og ampo ang inyong kandidato bisa’g sa satanas pa mo mag-ampo (Go ahead and pray for your candidate even to Satan),” Gica quoted Mayonila.
Gica said the former barangay chief he was with will run against Mayonila in the next month’s polls.
He said he went back to Mayonila and asked the latter why he shouted at him.
Mayonila then accused Gica of slapping the barangay captain in the shoulder.
After 20 minutes, Gica claimed he saw Mayonila’s motorcycle parked outside the Dumanjug Police Station.
Gica denied hitting Mayonila.
“I never hit him. I never touched him,” said Gica.
He said it would be unlikely for a town official like him to do what was alleged at the police station.
Gica said he is considering options on what to do against Mayonila’s allegation.