No ‘Sugbuak’ hearings in Cebu, insists lawmaker

CEBU — Negros Oriental Rep. Emilio Macias slammed the door shut on the faces of Cebuanos who are still entertaining the hope of having the "Sugbuak " (divide-Cebu) hearings held here.

Macias, who heads the House committee on local governments which has jurisdiction over the three separate bills seeking to create three new provinces out of Cebu, said he has the final say on any action his panel may take and that as far as he is concerned, there will be no hearings in Cebu.

The hopes of having even at least one hearing in Cebu were fanned by pronouncements made by Camarines Sur Rep. Luis Villafuerte last Friday that he would hold a public hearing in Cebu regardless of Macias’ position on the issue.

Villafuerte heads a technical working group which Macias created to study the three bills filed by last-term Cebu Reps. Simeon Kintanar, Antonio Yapha and Clavel Asas-Martinez seeking to carve new provinces out of their respective congressional districts.

But Macias, who has long made his position known that he is against any hearings in Cebu despite the fact that the bills concern Cebuanos, said that despite the promises Villafuerte might have made, all actions of the technical working group are still subject to his final approval.

"The technical working group still needs to report to the mother committee. Whatever they do, they still have to inform the mother committee, so I do not know what he meant by that," he said.

Macias has cited a number of reasons for refusing to hold hearings in Cebu.

His latest excuse in not accommodating the Cebuanos’ wish is that holding a hearing in Cebu would entail a lot of expenses.

"That will involve money. Unsaon man nila na (How will they do that)?" he said.

Macias estimates that each of the 95 members of his committee would need to spend P6,000 for fares alone. Add to that the budget for food and the expenses of the committee’s secretariat, the cost will be considerable, he added.

"It will only be a junket for the committee," he said.

Earlier, Macias said there was no need to hold any hearings in Cebu because his committee’s job was merely ministerial, that is, to determine if the proposed new provinces met the requirements on income, population and size.

Later, he argued that the issue is so emotionally charged that he fears his committee might not be able to handle the hearings properly if they are held in Cebu.

Macias also said the hearings are not the proper fora for Cebuanos to register their sentiments, saying they could do that during a plebiscite once Congress passes the bills. — Freeman News Service