IS Talisay City Mayor Johnny V. “JVR” de los Reyes losing grip of his reelection bid this May? If his recent actions are any indication, I say it does look like it. He is the only politician I know who is painting himself into a corner and alienating himself even from his supposed allies.
His latest caper was to separate himself from the Liberal Party (LP), the group that helped him defeat the formidable Eduardo Gullas in the 2013 mayoral polls, for the flimsy reason that LP standard bearer Mar Roxas mentioned Gullas in his speech instead of him in a gathering in Mandaue City. He tried ingratiating himself to Jejomar Binay’s United Nationalist Alliance (UNA) but was promptly rebuffed. He then announced he will remain with the LP after all.
While a national party may not be that important to a local candidate, it still is important. Or why would almost all local candidates always try to align themselves with a national party? JVR himself wanted to be recognized as the official candidate of the LP in Talisay. Then he wanted to be with UNA. So when he said he does not need a national party, he is actually sourgraping.
I don't know if JVR has a political adviser although, considering his actions since he took over as mayor in 2013, it seems like he doesn't have any. He is either doing things on his own or listening only to family members, and the result has often been amateurish.
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The battle has shifted from the media to the courts. After elements of the Regional Special Operations Group (RSOG) 7 filed cases against Assistant City Prosecutor Mary Ann Castro and his six companions for the ruckus at the Police Regional Office (PRO) 7 headquarters Monday night, it is now the turn of Castro to map out the cases she would file against the policemen. We all know that Castro is not shy in filing cases against those that cross her path.
The Monday night incident involved Maricel Raffinan Gregory, the live-in-partner of Castro's estranged husband Leodegreco Sanchez, brother of Provincial Board Member Grecilda Sanchez. RSOG 7 elements took Gregory under their custody after warrants for her arrest was issued for the libel cases that Castro filed. Castro had suspected that Greco's sister arranged with RSOG 7 to treat Gregory leniently and thus wanted her transferred to Talisay City. When RSOG 7 refused, that was when she went “wild.”
Considering Castro's history, her actions Monday night did not endear her to the public. I myself would want the Department of Justice (DOJ) to look into her conduct considering that she is a prosecutor. But it would also be unfair to heap all the blame on her because the police could also be at fault. Like, was her suspicion about Gregory being given special treatment true? That's something that the PRO 7 should also look into.
Another thing. Why did the RSOG 7 elements allow the situation to deteriorate to a point that Castro was able to harass Gregory, go wild and bite a cop's arm and even damage the lock of the RSOG 7 office? The claim about maximum tolerance does not wash for me. Maximum tolerance may apply to the treatment of rallyists but not in protecting a police office and persons inside it.
I remember being detained in the '80s inside the Regional Security Unit (RSU) 7 office which was also inside the PRO 7 headquarters. The RSU agents were very strict on those who were visiting persons under their custody, ordering the then law intern Noel Archival, who had wanted to see me, to stay outside.
I don't know how much the rules in the PRO 7 headquarters have changed since then, but I think the basic is that if RSOG is also an intelligence unit (it is under the Regional Intelligence Division, right?) then security should be stricter there than in other PRO 7 unit offices.
(khanwens@gmail.com/ twitter: @khanwens)