Council begs off cases of erring brgy officials

CEBU, Philippines - Cebu City Vice Mayor Edgardo Labella is requesting the newly-installed Deputy Ombudsman for the Visayas Rodulfo Elman not to refer to the City Council complaints against erring barangay officials to avoid speculations of political biases.

Labella, who used to be director of the Office of the Ombudsman-Visayas before joining politics in 1998, explained that while City Council is empowered to investigate complaints against barangay officials, it would be better for graft investigators to conduct the probe.

Labella said the anti-graft office usually refers to the City Council complaints against erring barangay officials in the city. During the past weeks, the City Council had been flooded with referrals of cases from the Ombudsman against several barangay officials.

To dispose of the complaints, the City Council normally creates a committee of three councilors to conduct the investigation. North district councilors will investigate erring officials from the barangays in the south and vice versa. (FREEMAN)