Caloocan solon urged to pay huge phone bills

Caloocan City Administrator Mamerto "Mert" Manahan yesterday urged Rep. Edgar Erice to just settle his office’s huge phone bills and not drag politics into it.

"Politics is out of the issue. If his office owes something to the PLDT, then he should talk to proper agencies and have it settled," Manahan said.

The Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co. (PLDT’s) latest billing for Erice’s office amounted to more than P380,000. The bill for the month of April alone is P15,000.

Manahan said they had sent Erice a letter through the local general services office (GSO) informing him of his office’s obligations as the PLDT warned that it might be constrained to disconnect City Hall’s telephone lines unless the account would be settled. Erice, however, said that he is not aware of the matter yet.

"I haven’t received any notice or letter regarding my office’s phone bills," Erice said. But his camp claimed that the phone bill issue is another form of political harrassment on the neophyte solon.

Erice announced earlier his resignation from Mayor Reynaldo Malonzo’s Lakas party saying it is against his principles to support the candidacy of the mayor’s heir apparent, his common law wife, Gigi Emnace.

Erice said that Malonzo failed to consult with his partymates on the latter’s plan to field Emnace as the party’s standard bearer in the 2004 elections.

Although Erice did not officially declare his intention to run for mayor in the next elections, he has hinted that he is keen on running against Malonzo’s bet.

Manahan, however, said that the 2004 elections are too far yet, and many changes could still happen before the polls.

"We are a democratic country. It’s Mayor Malonzo’s right to endorse anyone he thinks could continue his dreams for Caloocan. But the polls are yet far away and many things could still happen," Manahan said.