Showdown averted

The showdown between the two mayors of Malabon and the violence that could have erupted between their loyal supporters did not take place yesterday.

Suspended Mayor Amado Vicencio chose not to appear at city hall yesterday despite promising to preside over a meeting of department heads. His absence allowed the acting mayor, Vice Mayor Mark Allan Jay Yambao to take "unmolested" control of city hall functions.

Yambao said yesterday said he will not step down unless ordered by the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG), which appointed him as chief executive.

He also threatened to slap Vicencio with usurpation of authority should he insist on reclaiming his post at city hall. And while telling department heads they are free to decide on whom to follow, Yambao, nevertheless, made it clear that he will not hesitate to charge erring officials with insubordination.

Yambao was designated acting mayor of the city and was sworn in Thursday last week following Malacañang’s order to suspend Vicencio for 60 days while the administrative case involving the alleged anomalous purchase of a piece of property in Tanza, Navotas is being resolved by the DILG. The property was intended for Malabon’s displaced rail dwellers.

The suspension order was posted at the gate of Vicencio’s house that same day after several attempts to serve it personally to the mayor, failed.

Vicencio reclaimed his office last Friday, armed with a temporary restraining order (TRO) issued by the Court of Appeals to stop the suspension order from being implemented.

Despite vowing he would not step down from office, Vicencio failed to report for work yesterday at city hall. The mayor could not be reached for comment even as his close aides and legal advisers also kept mum about the recent developments, saying they did not have the go-signal.

His other supporters, however, said the "no-show" was not an act of conceding defeat but a "magnanimous move."

Yambao admitted that the TRO had further muddled the issue and put city hall employees in a bind.

"Nasa inyo ang desisyon. Hindi naming kayo pinipilit kung hindi kayo susunod sa amin," Yambao told department heads in the executive meeting he called yesterday at the city council’s session hall.

The statement was in response to a dilemma the officials faced in carrying on with their regular functions. "If there are two mayors, where do we stand," the department heads asked on forseeing a virtual paralysis of local government functions. Yambao admitted he was also confused but trusted his lawyers to see him through.

"Ako naguguluhan din pero kung ano ang advice sa akin ng lawyers ko, yun ang susundin ko. I have to act in the face of this dilemma. Kung tumigil ako, I face dereliction of duty. Kung itutuloy ko, I might be charged for usurpation. To settle the issue, the court (CA) has to decide. Meanwhile, I’ll wait for the specific orders from DILG which put me here," Yambao said.

Vicencio earlier presented the same argument.

City administrator Samilo Barlongay, who was in the meeting with Yambao, advised the officials to do their jobs regardless of who they believe is the rightful mayor.

"Ituloy natin ang trabaho natin kahit na sino ang mayor na pumepuwesto. You must be free to do as you wish and obey whoever is the authority. At sana wag na itong (krisis) magtagal pa," said Barlongay, a close aide of Vicencio, hoping that Yambao, if ever, would not think of slapping sanctions on those who think differently from him.

At presstime, The STAR gathered from DILG sources that Legal Services director Jose Emeterio Romero disclosed there is a big possibility they would recommend to Malacañang the lifting of Vicencio’s 60 day suspension order based on the TRO favoring Vicencio.