CEBU City Mayor Nestor Archival has denied accusations that he prioritizes barangay officials allied with him when approving requests for City Hall assistance.
In an interview on Monday, Aug. 4, 2025, Archival said he does not consider political affiliation when acting on requests from barangay officials.
San Nicolas Proper Barangay Captain Clifford Niñal, in a now-deleted Facebook post on July 31, claimed he had sought assistance from the City Government for a drainage issue.
According to Niñal’s post, a concerned citizen had written to the Department of the Interior and Local Government on July 24, raising concerns about uncovered manholes in the community. The manholes, he said, posed safety risks and had already caused accidents.
In another post last Friday, Aug. 1, Niñal said the manholes were temporarily covered while awaiting a response from City Hall. He said a letter dated July 14 and addressed to Archival had already been sent to the Mayor’s Office.
In an interview after Friday’s post, Niñal claimed the City had been coordinating with barangay mayor’s offices (BMOs) instead of incumbent barangay officials. He said the BMOs were tasked with facilitating the release of aid.
“Favored candidates”
Niñal also claimed that BMO representatives were the current administration party’s favored candidates for the upcoming Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan Elections (BSKE) originally set in December 2025. (Editor’s note: President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. is expected to sign into law a legislative measure seeking to move the 2025 BSKE to November 2026.)
Niñal said public services should not be affected by election-related politics. He added that San Nicolas Proper lacked personnel to operate its two garbage trucks as the barangay can only afford to hire one driver despite the growing demand for garbage collection.
For his part, Archival said he was unaware of any delayed requests from Niñal.
“I don’t understand what he means by ‘delay,’” Archival said in Cebuano adding that he does not favor any official based on political ties.
“There is no truth to that. I have accommodated all requests from the captains. Not necessarily all four of their requests, but at least one,” Archival said.
“I thought he was with us, but (apparently), he is not,” Archival said.
“I don’t have to [call a meeting with him] because I have a lot of things to attend to, especially the suspended officials,” added the mayor.
The Office of the Ombudsman had earlier ordered the dismissal of eight current and one former City Hall official for a P239-million garbage anomaly in 2021, prompting the Archival administration to find suitable replacements to fill in key positions in important departments such as the City Treasurer’s Office and the City Accounting Office. / EHP