Top of the Week: Evicting the mayors even before elections.

Top of the Week: Evicting the mayors even before elections.
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At no other time in recent history had two mayors in Metro Cebu been capped in the knee before the fight, not even sure if they could go up the ring. Figuratively of course. Shortly after Cebu City mayor Mike Rama filed his COC for reelection in May 2025, the Ombudsman dismissed him from service. And before he could file a motion for reconsideration of the penalty, DILG enforced the order, pronto. Expecting another suspension, he got worse: loss of the mayor’s seat at City Hall.

The phrase ‘not final but executory’ suddenly becomes a reducer of one’s earned-by-election term or its devastating terminator.

Same fate for Mandaue City Mayor Jonas Cortes. Pow! Wham! And both were kicked off the stage of power.

And maybe Rama and Cortes would be eliminated from the elections itself, once Comelec makes good its threat to “enforce immediately” the Ombudsman orders of dismissal.

Unless -- the daunting “unless” -- the Supreme Court, where both ex-mayors have raised separate petitions, will issue a TRO against Comelec and stop it from cancelling their COCs.

If it were solely an operation of bureaucracy’s disciplinary system, believers in the fair contest would be relieved. But indications point to the hand of political power at work.

The Supreme Court, “the last resort,” could ruin any best-laid plan, if the high court would be quicker than the planners and executors.

Of 5 aspirants for Cebu City mayor: 3 have the fighting chance, 2 have no problem with Comelec and could be the ones last standing.

Two who, given inadequate prominence and absence of infrastructure, have slim chances: Yogi Filemon Ruiz and Julito Co. A third who’s battling two fronts, for the vote and to keep his name on the ballot: Mike Rama.

Which leaves Raymond Alvin Garcia and Nestor Archival Sr. relatively hassle-free to kick each other’s butt.

Tomas Osmena, ex-mentor  and  rival of Mike Rama  
in  past four elections, would rather have  Rama evicted by votes than by the Ombudsman.  Amen to that, said the preventively suspended then  dismissed mayor.
Tomas Osmena, ex-mentor and rival of Mike Rama in past four elections, would rather have Rama evicted by votes than by the Ombudsman. Amen to that, said the preventively suspended then dismissed mayor.

What we wonder about Royina Garma, Cebu City’s former police chief: Did she do mean, bad things here as she allegedly did elsewhere?

Garma sorry for drug war mistakes
ROYINA GARMA / SCREENSHOT HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVE

Her turnaround at the House quad committee hearings -- squealing on former bosses, such as ex-president Rodrigo Duterte and Bong Go, and co-workers and doing all the unlawful stuff -- must draw the thought: Whatmean, bad things did she do while in Cebu City?

That is, besides her skirmishes with then mayor Tomas Osmena that helped him lose the 2019 election.

Requiem to ‘Singapore-like’ catchphrase

The first attention-grabbing act full-pledged Mayor Raymond Alvin Garcia did was to junk dismissed mayor Mike Rama’s favorite advocacy to ape Singapore and the slogan with it: “a Singapore-like Cebu City.”

Even as the execution cum burial catches public interest, it also prompts the question whether its underlying goal -- for a progressive, peaceful and more livable city -- be still pursued and how.

‘Who she’ or ‘who you’: a fair question about/to Pamela Baricuatro, running against incumbent Gov. Gwen Garcia.

In fairness, Pamela has no voting record to compare with her rival Gwen’s.

Her opponent, reelectionist Gov. Gwen Garcia, won 50.80% of the vote in 2019 and 80.80% of the vote in 2022. The most recent and stunning was last election’s 1.478 million, the highest number of votes ever amassed by an aspirant for governor in Cebu history, compared to her opponent Ace Durano’s 343,455.

Google Pamela and Gwen.

Start with that.

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