ILOILO City Mayor Jerry Trenas signed Friday, June 23, the executive order declaring Bacolod City Vice Mayor El Cid Familiaran persona non grata in the city.
This, after some 80 Badjaos from Bacolod City arrived in Dumangas Port, Iloilo, on Friday, June 23. They were bound for Mindanao and were only passing through Iloilo.
But the Iloilo City mayor expressed his disappointment at the lack of proper coordination on the part of Familiaran regarding this matter.
“As a leader himself, he is expected to observe proper measures as a sign of respect to other local government units,” Trenas stressed, adding that “As the Chief Executive of Iloilo City, I abhor this kind of behavior. He should be accountable for his actions.”
Trenas, in his EO, said that Familiaran facilitated for the Badjaos, also known as "sea gypsies," to be sent to their respective hometowns to ensure that will not beg on the streets and will leave Bacolod.
He stressed that the Iloilo City government does not discriminate against nor feel any indifference against the Badjaos, but he strongly abhors the act of Familiaran, in his capacity as acting mayor, to have ordered the transfer of Badjaos to Iloilo City despite the lack of coordination and communication with the supposed LGUs involved.
He pointed out that the "uncoordinated transfer" of the Badjaos, the Iloilo City Social Welfare and Development Office was "unable to effectively prepare for the arrival" of over 80 Badjaos which "inevitably hampered the services that the office could provide.
Familiaran, in response, stressed that the destination of the vessel is not direct to Iloilo City, “so we are not dumping the Badjaos to the said city.”
On June 21, at least 84 Badjaos, who were rounded up by the Department of Social Services and Development (DSSD) in Bacolod City, were sent home to Jolo, Sulu, through the roll-on-roll-off vessel at the Bredco Port, then docked in Dumangas Port.
Familiaran said the Badjaos promised that they will go home to their homeland in Mindanao.
“They promised that they will go home so it’s not our intention that those individuals will proceed to Iloilo City. They docked in Dumangcas Port so we also expect that they will go home directly to their homeland in Mindanao,” he said.
Familiaran also apologized to Treñas because of the action of the Badjaos.
He said Treñas should investigate first before he issued his statement.
Familiaran noted that the 84 Badjaos, including adults and children, were convinced to return to their hometown.
“It’s the effort of the city government to address this problem because they were using their children for begging on the street and inside jeepneys, and it’s very dangerous for their safety,” he said.
Aside from the 84 Bandjaos, Familiaran said that some of their companions are still in Bacolod and will be sent to their hometown soon.
Familiaran disclosed that the remaining Badjaos in Bacolod will be temporarily sheltered at the city’s evacuation center in Abada Escay, Barangay Vista Alegre, to ensure that they will not beg on the streets.
Meanwhile, Bacolod Mayor Alfredo Benitez issued his "sincere apologies" to the city government of Iloilo and Trenas for the blunder.
"Due to the large number of families that were handled by the task force, it failed to properly coordinate with the province of Iloilo regarding the arrival of these families from Bacolod," he said.
He assured Trenas that Bacolod will not make the same mistake again in the future, as "we value the harmonious relationship between the cities of Bacolod and Iloilo."*