AMID SUSPENSION ROW

AMID a tense standoff on May 26 at the Sual Municipal Hall in the presence of officials from the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) and the police, the town’s legal officer, Gerald Velasco, clarified in a media interview that Mayor Liseldo ‘Dong’ Calugay remains the legitimate and sitting mayor.

Velasco reiterated his stance that no suspension can be enforced against Calugay due to the prevailing election ban, which prohibits the suspension of any elected local official during the election period, which will officially be until June 11.

“The law is our reason why we are saying that he is not suspended,” he said, citing the Commission on Elections (Comelec) Resolution No. 11059 and the Omnibus Election Code.

A team led by DILG Regional Director Jonathan Paul Leusen Jr., Assistant Regional Director Paulino Lalata Jr., DILG Pangasinan Provincial Director Virgilio Sison, and Police Provincial OIC Col. Ricardo David arrived at the municipal building Monday afternoon, purportedly to enforce a suspension order issued by the Office of the Ombudsman against Calugay for simple misconduct.

Vice Mayor John Arcinue took oath as acting mayor on May 10, but Velasco argued that such an act holds no legal weight due to the lack of a COMELEC exemption, a required step for implementing any suspension during the election period.

He also challenged the DILG’s position, stating that the department has issued consistent legal opinions in 2010, 2017, and 2019 affirming that suspensions during the election period are barred unless an exemption from the Comelec is obtained.

According to him, the DILG team that arrived at the municipal hall claimed that the suspension had already been enforced starting May 5.

“They said they were here to monitor the implementation,” he said. “But if they’re just supervising, then what is the legal basis of that supervision? Even the monitoring has no basis if the suspension itself is void,” he added.

Velasco further stated that despite the ongoing dispute, the municipality continues to function normally under the leadership of Calugay, who won his re-election bid during the May 12 elections.

“We don’t want to think this is political harassment,” he said. “But we cannot ignore the inconsistency between what they claim and what the law requires.”

As of press time, no new directive or clarification has been issued by the DILG or the Office of the Ombudsman. (Eva Visperas)

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