Tomas visits basketball courts where city boards were removed

CEBU, Philippines - Cebu City Mayor Tomas Osmeña yesterday visited several barangays in the city where his rivals Jonathan Guardo and Lahug barangay captain Mary Ann delos Santos allegedly used his and the city government’s donated basketball courts and goals for their own political purposes.

“This is to show you the absurdity of his accusations. I spent for the goal personally, and he’s entitled to put his board there and rip off my boards? And when I will put mine back they will say I’m the terrorist” he said after having personally seen his boards replaced with ones bering the names of either Guardo or Delos Santos.

The first area he inspected was in Sitio Langub in Barangay Guadalupe where the boards are now those with name of Atan Guardo in bold letters. Osmeña said that the particular goals in Langub were donated by the city government and Guardo replaced it for free publication of his name.

“Do you think he will put that without his name?” the mayor asked.

The mayor also went to barangay Lahug specifically in sitios Lower and Upper Banica and there residents told him that it was Delos Santos who insisted to replace Osmeña’s boards with hers.

“Kapila bitaw na namo gitangtang para ibalik ang kang Mayor pero katong ikatulo na, giari ko ni kapitan, gikasab-an ko. Ngano kunong manghilabot ko, unsa man gyud kuno daw akong katungod diri. Giingnan sad ko na ikiha ko,” said Ricky Sanchez who is a supporter of the mayor and the one tasked to put back the mayor’s boards.

Sammy Go, president of the community’s association in Lower Banica seconded Sanchez’s claim that Delos Santos always removed Osmeña’s boards to put hers.

“Dili na sad mi makahilabot sukad atong nangasaba siya diri kay nahadlok naman ang mga tawo. Magdala man na siyag mga 20 ka tawo diri. So kami karon, naghuwat na lang og instruction gikan ni mayor kung unsaon ba, tangtangon ba nang goal,” Go said.

But Osmeña said that he has no intention now to remove the boards of Guardo and Delos Santos because the two, he said, are using it as a propaganda to imply that he is a terrorist.

“So who’s the terrorist now? I will not remove those because that is their style, they want to appear martyr so they can accuse me as the terrorist,” Osmeña said.

He stressed that Delos Santos and Guardo violated several laws which include destruction of government property, trespassing and illegal billboards.

He said it was trespassing because the basketball court in Lower Banica belongs to his relatives.

“I just got the permission from the Villalons to use this, I cemented it and all that. How do you think I feel? I spent for that and she puts her name?”

Osmeña spent more or less P18,000 for each pair of goals he personally donated, said Demetrio Rosario, one of those hired by the mayor for its construction and installation to various barangays.   —Jessica Ann R. Pareja/BRP (THE FREEMAN)