Renovation of school fence puts vice mayor on spot
MANGALDAN – Giving credit where it is due appears to be the underlying issue behind the problem now facing the town’s vice mayor. It’s all about a school fence.
Vice Mayor Berex Abalos was sought by the school’s officials and original donors to explain why the school fence in barangay Bantayan he helped renovate was made to appear as if the whole structure was donated by him, his wife and family, when it wasn’t.
Salome Abrera, principal of the Bantayan Elementary School protested when workers employed by Abalos for the renovation of the structure erased the names of original donors and replaced it with the name of the Abalos, making it appear as if the whole fence was donated by Abalos, his wife and family.
Abrera said she initially did not lift a finger when workers started writing Abalos’ name on the renovated wall having been given the impression that the funding may have come from the vice mayor’s personal funds.
But she found out later that the expenses were charged to a municipal fund where a check of P40,000 issued by the municipal treasurer was issued to her to cover the expenses, only to be asked by the vice mayor to turn-over the check to him .
Hence, the renovation was completed purportedly using the vice mayor’s personal funds.
And yet, Abrera estimated that the cost of the renovation project could not have cost more than P20,000. She now accuses the vice mayor of over-pricing the project by 100%.
Abalos later admitted that the project cost was, indeed, charged from his barangay development fund but denied any wrongdoing since projects funded by other officials, including President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, Speaker Jose de Venecia and even Mangaldan Mayor Herminio Romero, have their names also written as donors of these projects.
Now, the original donors of the fence are also up in arms because their names were erased and replaced with the names of “Vice Mayor Berex Abalos, his wife and family” when in fact they insist that only one line of hollow blocks was added to the original structure.– APE
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