INQUIRY ON COLLAPSED CEILING

“HE’S back barking up the wrong tree”.

This was the reaction of Dagupan City Councilor Jose Netu Tamayo to the resolution filed by Minority Leader Councilor Redford Erfe-Mejia calling on a legislative inquiry on the reported collapse of a ceiling of a building being constructed at the Dagupan City National High School (DCNHS).

Erfe Mejia filed the resolution on his belief that the affected building was the building constructed by the city government, for the Special Program on the Arts at the DCNHS.

Tamayo, in a talk to The PUNCH clarified that the incident happened in another building being built by the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH).

Tamayo said the building where the ceiling reportedly collapsed at the height of a recent strong typhoon has not been completed nor was it turned over to the City Schools Division.

Erfe-Mejia’s resolution was denied when none of his colleagues seconded his motion and
Vice Mayor and presiding officer Brian Lim, a political ally of Erfe-Mejia, ruled that since no seconded the motion, “there shall be  no further discussion on the matter.”

For not supporting his measure, Erfe-Mejia chided his colleagues and accused them of  rejecting his call for unity, transparency and public accountability that could have ascertained the status of public works projects in the city.

Asked why he did not stand up to reject Erfe-Mejia’s claim, Tamayo told The PUNCH that if he did, he could have been declared out of order by the presiding officer since the latter already ruled.

At the same time, Tamayo maintained that the SP is not the proper forum for the legislative inquiry sought by Erfe-Mejia because the implementing agency of the affected project is  the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH), through the Department of Education.

“The proper venue is Congress because it is the project of the national government,” Tamayo said. (Leonardo Micua)

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