Osmeña fires consultant over P50,000 bribe ‘joke’

CEBU CITY — One of two councilors offered a supposed bribe by a consultant to Mayor Tomas Osmeña has agreed with the consultant that the offer was a joke.

Councilor George Rama told The Freeman he did not take Arturo Barrit seriously when the consultant offered him and fellow councilor Gerardo Carillo P50,000, saying it was all said in jest.

But that is small consolation to Barrit because Osmeña saw no laughing matter in the joke and asked his consultant to resign.

Rama said he was surprised the joke eventually wound up getting reported in the media as a bribe offer. "We used to share those kinds of jokes. It was nothing serious," he said.

But what appeared to be a joke to Barrit and Rama did not rub the same way on Carillo who felt offended.

On Jan. 24, Carillo, Rama and Barrit met at Carillo’s office because the two councilors wanted to give Barrit the findings of an inspection by two city engineers on the controversial Hino dump trucks the city had wanted to buy from Pasajero Motor Corp. (Pamocor).

The engineers had determined that the trucks had certain defects and Barrit wanted the findings kept out of media until after the councilors were able to discuss what to do about the intended purchase.

Barrit is said to be close to Pamocor officials.

Carillo and Rama had wanted to return the trucks to Pamocor and have them replaced by brand-new trucks, not those merely assembled from imported parts.

Barrit then asked Carillo and Rama, supposedly in jest, that if they were given P50,000 would they accept the trucks even if only the defective parts were replaced and not the entire trucks.

Barrit said they then laughed, including Carillo who apparently gave no indication he was offended. He said Rama even rode on the joke.

Carillo, however, is now saying he was not used to Barrit acting that way and that he took the joke as an affront to his being a city official.

Osmeña did not give Barrit the chance to explain his side when he called him on his cellphone Friday afternoon.

Osmeña hired Barrit as a consultant a month after he assumed as mayor in July 2001. Barrit ran for councilor under the mayor’s political party but lost. — Freeman News Service