Mayor's signature prevails - SP Secretary

CEBU, Philippines - The Secretary’s Office of the Cebu City Council will honor the signature of Mayor Michael Rama on Cebu City Ordinance 2332 and not his veto.

Sangguniang Panlungsod (SP) Secretary Cynthia Kahulugan, in a CCTN Channel 47 interview, said that signing the ordinance, which signifies his approval of the ordinance, was the mayor’s first action and shall prevail, as far as the SP is concerned.

The Secretary’s Office received the signed ordinance last August 1.

Exactly a week after, Rama sent his veto message.

The members of the City Council already made a declaration that they will honor the approved ordinance over the veto.

City Ordinance 2332 or the “Ordinance Protecting the SRP and its Stakeholders from Unlawful and Unauthorized Transactions and Dealings” was passed by the council last month.

It seeks to protect the SRP from sale and other transactions that are not authorized by the council.

The mayor has been very vocal that he will veto the ordinance because he believes it is oppressive, unreasonable and contravening to the Constitution.

But he was shocked to learn last August 7 that he already affixed his signature “unknowingly.”

He immediately registered his veto on the same day he discovered the ordinance was already signed.

Rama explained that the ordinance placed on his table for signature might have been mislabeled.

But he was criticized by the council for signing something without even reading. The council said the incident is a clear proof of mismanagement on the part of the mayor.

City Administrator Jose Marie Poblete, who was tasked by the Mayor to investigate how the paper was mixed with other documents for his signature, said yesterday that he is investigating the matter but not to look for the person at fault.

He said that finding the person to blame is immaterial since they stand by the position of the executive that the ordinance must be vetoed.

He said they do not have to reach the point of checking if the signature was forged.

“The mayor has already vetoed it. As far as we are concerned, the veto will prevail. Besides, he said he is against it since day 1. It shows that he really had no intention to sign,” he said.

Poblete said that they are now focusing on how to improve the system of segrating documents for Rama’s signature.     - THE FREEMAN