Valle tells SP: Your internal rules will not be binding on city executive
THE internal rules of the Sangguniang Panlungsod cannot be over and above a substantive law—Republic Act 7160 or the Local Government Code (LGC) of 1991.
This was stressed by City Legal Officer Aurora Valle as she cited the LGC that prescribes the conduct of public hearings before its passage and approval, to refute the position of the seven-man majority of the SP that only committee hearings instead of public hearings will be held based on House Rules they promulgated.
“We are bound by what is in the law—public hearing,” Valle said when she appeared on January 31 before the SP. “When there is a public hearing, the public and tax payers will be given the chance to attend and know what are being discussed about,” she intoned.
“Your internal rules is your own but… the Chief Executive will not be bound by your internal rules… because internal rules cannot be over and above the provisions of a substantive law, which delegated powers upon public officials, the mayor and the vice mayor,” she pointed out.
Valle said the city executive acknowledges all communications from the legislative department if signed by Vice Mayor and SP presiding officer Bryan Kua, and not by Councilor Redford Erfe-Mejia, as committee chairman.
Mayor Belen Fernandez had written the SP last January 18 and 25, 2023, requesting that all invitations to department heads should be addressed to her as head of the executive department since it is she who can order department heads to attend SP hearings. At the same time she insisted that the invitations must indicate the date of the appearance of the department heads and the documents that they will have to bring with them.
Noting that Councilor Erfe-Mejia also bypassed Vice Mayor Kua when he signed the invitation to department heads, Valle said the vice mayor is empowered by the LGC to sign all communications coming from the SP making these communications valid and effective.
Erfe-Mejia also did not withdraw his invitation for Mayor Fernandez to attend the committee hearing despite the appearance of Valle and members of the local finance committee to his committee. (Leonardo Micua)
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