URBIZTONDO—Mayor Ernesto Balolong Jr. faced the media last Thursday to debunk reports that he has been in hiding to evade being served the 60-day preventive suspension ordered by Governor Amado Espino Jr. based on the provincial board’s recommendation issued on March 24.

“I am not in hiding why should I … They are spreading lies. That’s foul,” Balolong said, noting that his “political enemies” are the ones doing illegal things but did not elaborate.

He said he continues to perform his duties and actually was at his office at the municipal hall Monday and Tuesday, adding that he missed work on Wednesday due to illness.

He denounced the suspension order for abuse of discretion and has filed an appeal before the Office of the President.

Members of the Sangguniang Panlalawigan (SP) who signed the recommendation had expected Balolong to elevate the case before the Office of the President as he had done so in another administrative case in 2012.

In August 2012, the SP also suspended Balolong for 60 days but Malacañang lifted the order after the mayor filed an urgent petition to set aside the suspension order.
Balolong suspects a board member was behind the administrative cases filed against him.

He also assailed the stance of Vice Mayor Raul Martin Sison, son of Board Member Raul Sison, saying he was among those who signed the resolution authorizing the mayor to secure a loan from the Philippine National Bank which is the crux of the administrative complaint against him.

“If I was at fault, then all of us must be punished. My role was only ministerial because they (councilors) already gave me the authority (to negotiate),” Balolong said.

The sangguniang bayan enacted an ordinance on March 28, 2012 authorizing the mayor to negotiate and borrow from the PNB P52.4 million to finance local projects.

The complainant in the first and second cases, Loida Cancino, former municipal treasurer, accused the mayor of withdrawing P26-M from the approved PNB loan without an approved appropriation ordinance.

The provincial board, however, had declared the ordinance null and void on July 16, 2012.

While the town’s 2013 annual budget included an appropriation for the amortization of the PNB loan worth P8,441,33.59, the provincial board declared it as inoperative. The municipality paid the interest on the PNB loan on August 24, 2013.—Tita Roces

Urbiztondo owes GSIS P4.6- M,
employees affected

URBIZTONDO—This town appears to be facing more woes than just a political strife involving its mayor.

The local government unit (LGU) here owes the Government Service Insurance System (GSIS) P4.2-million plus P600,000 interest in unpaid premiums of its employees since January 2013 to present.

This prevents employees of the LGU to avail of salary loans from GSIS.

Mayor Ernesto Balolong said the employees are aware of their situation.

Vice Mayor Raul Sison points the finger at Balolong for mismanaging the payments.

“The problem is he (Sison) wants me to bear the cross, all the faults,” Balolong said.

Sison, who earlier made an inquiry from GSIS Dagupan Branch Manager Joselito Roldan, said he was told of the unsettled accounts on account of the town’s failure to remit the monthly premium payments.

Sison said he is looking into possible legal action against concerned town officials responsible for the mishandling of payments due GSIS.
The vice mayor claims that the LGU has been deducting the premium payments from employees’ pay slips but has not been remitting these to GSIS contrary to the declaration of Balolong.

FROM IRA

Balolong, in a separate interview, said the GSIS dues could not be met because the targeted local income was not reached.

The mayor said the town incurred a negative balance last year after failing to reach their local income target amounting to P15-million because “some politicians” in their town did not support his administrative agenda such as his projects in the public market due to “too much politicking”.
Balolong named Sison as among those who often oppose his proposed income-generating projects.

Sison, however, replied, “(That) is only his (mayor’s) defense.”

Sison explained that the local income should not affect the GSIS payments because the employees’ salaries are sourced from the town’s Internal Revenue Allotment (IRA.

“Whether we reach or not our local income, we will still be receiving our salaries and part of that are remittances for GSIS, PhilHealth and Pag-IBIG under personnel services which is 45 percent for payment of our statutory obligations,” he added.
Sison said other LGUs have been regularly remitting to the GSIS, again contrary to Balolong’s claim that other towns are facing the same dilemma.

Balolong also cited the arrears he inherited from previous administrations.

“About P2.5 million was by previous administration’s arrears and the present administration also incurred arrears but not too high,” Balolong said, adding that they are now starting to pay the unsettled amounts.

Balolong said he already ordered the town accountant to reconcile their records with GSIS and declined further comment.—Tita Roces 

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