3 opposition councilors indicted over October 10 session
ERFE-MEJIA, FERNANDEZ, LIM-ACOSTA
THREE opposition councilors in Dagupan City were indicted criminally in a resolution of the City Prosecution Service of Dagupan in connection with the affidavit-complaint for illegal detention, slander and disrupting a meeting filed last year by Vice Mayor Dean Bryan Kua and five councilors of the minority bloc.
This was contained in a 13-page resolution, a copy of which was received by The PUNCH before deadline, signed on February 16, 2024 by Associate Provincial Prosecutor Maychelle S. Ablog-Sergio, who was designated Acting Provincial Prosecutor of Dagupan City assigned to conduct preliminary investigation into the said affidavit-complaint.
Indicted for each of the cases of Disturbance of Proceedings, Grave Coercion and Grave Oral Defamation were Redford Christian Erfe-Mejia, Alipio Serafin D. Fernandez and Victoria Czarinna Lim-Acosta, all members the majority bloc in the Sangguniang Panlungsod of Dagupan.
The complaints, also signed by the other complainants namely Councilors Michael Fernandez, Jeslito Seen, Dennis Canto, Marcelino Fernandez and then Sangguniang Kabataan Federation chairman Joashua Bugayong, stemmed from the raucous that happened during the October 10, 2023 regular session when the minutes of the September 26 and October 3 sessions were brought to the body for approval.
It was respondent Erfe-Mejia who moved for the deferment of the September 26 minutes that resulted in fiery discussions until Erfe-Mejia and Alipio Serafin Fernandez made derogatory reaction against Vice Mayor Kua.
Despite due notice, the three respondents did not submit their counter-affidavit and countervailing evidence, hence the resolution was based on the affidavit complaint and the evidence submitted.
The complainants stated in their complaint-affidavit that what started as a usual order of the day in the session hall became “a belligerent verbal hodgepodge of expletives, shouts and calumnies verbal assault, all of them originating from the respondents.” (Leonardo Micua)
Share your Comments or Reactions
Powered by Facebook Comments
