Town may lose acting mayor

CEBU, Philippines - The northern town of Compostela which has DILG Regional Director Pedro Noval as acting mayor may soon again be without one.

This as Noval said that he is due for transfer as he has served the Department of Interior and Local Government in Central Visayas for over five years now.

In an interview over radio station dyRC, he said that his transfer would affect the town, as his appointment as acting mayor is separate from his role as regional director.

The town continues to be without an elected mayor as there is still a pending protest with regards to the results of the May 2010 elections.

Noval explained that it is the policy of the department to transfer personnel that have served between three to five years in one region.

While he is not worried about the reshuffling, it is Compostela that worries him.

“If there will be an order for the reshuffling, there should also be an order for Compostela, who will replace me if I will move out?” 

“My designation as OIC mayor of Compostela is separate and distinct as a regional director,” he said.

He hinted that if ever the DILG will order him to leave the region, he can’t do so right away.

“Ug naa na gali department order, I can’t act on it considering I can’t leave Compostela without an replacement kay ang mo lingkod nga Regional Director di-automatically mo lingokd nga officer-in-charge sa Compostela, ” he said.

According to him, if he will follow the order transferring him, he will also be “liable for abandonment of office if no replacement will be designated in Compostela.”

Following this possibility, he sent a letter to their central office yesterday clarifying the issue.

If the department’s central office will not carefully study Compostela’s matter, it will surely affect the residents. 

“That is detrimental sa mga tawo sa Compostela, kay ma hulog ta ana nga irresponsible ana even my self. I cannot allow anybody to file a case against me for abandonment of office,” Noval said.

But if DILG will not consider his scenario, as a good soldier, he has no choice but leave Compostela, again without a mayor.

“Pero kun naa na na, di man ko mo supak og reassignment kay I’ve been in service for 36 years already and being the regional director, I can be assigned anywhere,” he said.

He however said that it is not easy to run two offices at the same time. “Full time offices ning duha, ang DILG sa hapon ug Munisipyo sa buntag,” he said.

Noval was designated as “caretaker” of the town as the Commission on Elections is still to resolve who won between Ritchie Wagas and Joel Quiño in the mayoralty race last year.

Wagas, former Compostela mayor, lost to Quiño during the elections, filed an election protest against the newly-elected mayor and the eight councilors of the town citing discrepancies in the results of the automated elections.

He was able to secure a suspension order from the Comelec last June which was implemented last July 1, a day after Quiño assumed as mayor. — /NLQ (FREEMAN)