DILG exec: Fuentes kin could be liable

By NITZ ARANCON
Correspondent /

MEMBERS of the family of Rene Fuentes, the man with a mental disorder who died in the El Salvador city hall fire last week, could be held liable if it is established that they locked up the victim there, an official of the Department of Interior and Local Government said on Friday.

Edward Bhagwani, DILG director for Misamis Oriental, said this even as he called the act of locking up the mentally ill man at the El Salvador city hall as “inato” or an act that was without any regard for procedures.

“Sa normal gud ana nga procedure duna nay mga commitment papers. Pero kadto man gud, inato man lang gud to, gibutang lang  didto ang tawo aron dili maka-cause og samok, ug nahulog nga walay klaro nga procedure nga gi-follow kung unsay pamaagi sa pag-commit  sa maong tawo kay mora ra man gud to ug for safekeeping purposes lagi,” said Bhagwani.

He said that if it can be proven that Fuentes’s relatives locked the man up in city hall, then “dunay pod silay culpability, duna poy ilang tulobagon nganong boot-boot man sila og butang diha.”

Bhagwani said El Salvador city officials may opt to start an investigation to find out who allowed Fuentes to be locked up inside a city hall facility.

Anuncianon Prospero, head of El Salvador’s social welfare and development office, earlier alleged that Fuentes was locked up for “safekeeping” in a storage facility of the city engineer’s office by his sister Gina Cabigquis, a mere sitio leader. Prospero said Cabigquis also had the key to the city hall-owned facility.

Bhagwani however said he doubted if the El Salvador city government could be made to answer for the death of Fuentes because last Monday’s fire was a force majeure.

He said the local government can only be held accountable “kon sila mismo duna silay gihimo nga naka-cause sa maong sunog or [there was] negligence on their part, [then] duna silay tulobagon.”

Bhagwani said the local government cannot be charged with negligence over Fuentes’s death despite the fact that he died while locked up in a local government government facility.

He said what the El Salvador city government can do at this time is to extend aid to the family of Fuentes.

Bhagwani also went soft with El Salvador’s social workers, saying that they may have just placed Fuentes under “safekeeping” without proper documentation because the victim was allegedly violent.