CEBU, Philippines - Until now, Talisay City Mayor Johnny De los Reyes and members of the city council that are identified with the opposition Alayon party are still squabbling over the distribution of job orders.
Councilor Dennis Basillote has accussed his colleague, former mayor and now City Councilor Socrates Fernandez, for inserting a provision in the appropriation ordinance for next year’s budget that would allow them to keep their quota of job order employees at 50.
Basillote said Fernandez insisted that the provision in Section 5 of the ordinance be inserted in order to hostage De los Reyes’ administration.
Fernandez, along with other councilors under the Alayon Party, belong to the majority bloc in the city council.
Alayon is led by former first district Rep. Eduardo Gullas.
In a separate interview, Fernandez denied the allegation, and instead accused the mayor of having no word of honor.
The former mayor admitted adding the provision for the 2014 annual budget because De los Reyes failed to keep his promise to retain their quota of job order employees.
“He (De los Reyes) has no ‘palabra de honor’ (word of honor)â€, Fernandez said.
During the council caucus before the approval of the annual budget, Basillote said Fernandez and his allies attempted to insert the particular provision.
The provision states that aside from limiting the number of job order employees to 1, 400, the city is mandated to provide a quota of 50 to each city councilor, 100 for the vice mayor, two for department heads, and three for village chiefs.
However, administration councilors questioned the provision, adding that it will only supercede the city mayor’s authority to provide job order employees under the legislative department.
But the provision was eventually approved along with P628 million annual budget for 2014.
Villarante, however, said the mayor can choose to ignore the provision as the city council has no power to impose it on him.
But Fernandez insisted that the hiring of job order employees is a power not solely given to the city mayor.
“He (De los Reyes) should remember that Talisay is not ruled by one man. He is not the only one who is elected by the people,†Fernandez said.
Prior to that, Alayon-allied councilors criticized the mayor after the De los Reyes reduced the quotas of City Councilor Eduardo “Digul†Gullas III and Association of Barangay Councils (ABC) president Raul Cabanero following the approval of the annual budget last week. (FREEMAN)