By Leonardo Micua

 

THE series of legal setbacks suffered by the opposition councilors of Dagupan City could mean that justice and reason are not on their side in their continuing efforts to undermine the administration of Mayor Belen Fernandez.

It started on January 12, 2024 when the Regional Trial Court Branch 76, with Honorable Michael Paul Israel as presiding judge, denied their prayer for the issuance of a temporary restraining order (TRO) in a bid to stop the implementation of the 2023 budget passed belatedly on September 26, 2023.

Then, their prayer for the issuance of injunction relative to the 2023 budget was also denied by the same judge on April 18, 2024.

On November 11, 2024, Judge Israel denied their civil action for Declaratory Relief with Prayer for Injunction and TRO.

The opposition councilors also filed a criminal case before the Office of the Ombudsman over the passage of Ordinance No. 2274-2023 that enacted the 2023 budget, which is yet to be resolved by the anti-graft agency.

Then came the preventive suspension of three councilors who disrespected and badmouthed Vice Mayor Bryan Kua during the October 28, 2023 session when the latter refused to withdraw his ruling that only those present during the September 26, 2023 session when the 2023 budget was passed could vote for the approval of the minutes.

A criminal case against the three councilors is still pending before the Dagupan Municipal Trial Court. Another criminal case against one of the three is also pending in a separate sala of the MTC.

On September 16, 2024, the complaint of five opposition councilors against four city government employees for disturbance during the December 28, 2023 session when they assembled outside the SP building to press for the approval of a supplemental budget that contained among others their Special Recognition Incentive and Gratuity Pay was dismissed by the City Prosecutor’s Office. Their appeal was again denied by the prosecutor on October 17.

The DILG on November 11, 2024 also sustained the contention of the new majority in the SP that the presiding officer and five councilors can constitute a quorum and pass appropriation ordinances given that three councilors of the former majority are under a 60-day preventive suspension.

Most recently, the DBM said in a November 22, 2024 letter that the two appropriation ordinances submitted by the Sanggunian for review had the presumption of regularity.

I think many more legal setbacks are coming their way soon.

*          *          *          *

We were motoring to Tayug when the House Committee on Good Government and Public Accountability conducted another hearing on the utilization of confidential and intelligence funds of the OVP and the DepEd when VP Sara Duterte was still its secretary.

We would have loved to watch the hearing online, attended finally by VP Sara and the Special Disbursing Officers of the OVP and DepEd. 

But I was already committed to join Bernie Erasquin, retired station manager of DZMQ, now known as Radio ng Pilipinas Dagupan, to attend the 29th anniversary of Radio Station DWRS, which is called Radio ng Pilipinas Tayug.

On our way there, we dropped by Asingan to say hello to Ranjit Shahani, former vice governor, 6th District rep, and official of the Manila Economic Cooperation Office in Taiwan.

Ranjit, a candidate for 6th District board member, was very busy attending to numerous callers at his house. When our turn finally came, we told him he’s got to go to Dagupan and hang around just like in the old days.

He lamented to us that the province’s mainstream media has been so caught up with news in the central part of Pangasinan that there is very little coverage in the eastern parts, where there is so much development, especially economic.

I understood what Ranjit meant when we reached Tayug, the birthplace of the infamous Colorum Uprising in 1931, which has now been transformed into a bustling town.

DWRS station manager Romy Umipig said though Tayug is categorized as a second-class town, it has major commercial shops such as CSI, Magic, SaveMore and PureGold, and is considered eastern Pangasinan’s educational center, hosting one university and a college.

The neighboring towns of San Nicolas and San Manuel have been elevated to first class status, due mainly to higher income from taxes from the San Roque Multi-purpose Dam.  

But Tayug could very well be positioned to become the first and only city in that part of the province. I hope so. 

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