By Nora Sorino,
Sita Asequia
and Nene Lachica
of GSD-Iligan Bureau
ILIGAN City — The head of the Department of Interior and Local Government here yesterday said it was still unclear to him who should serve as the city’s acting vice mayor in the absence of Jemar Vera Cruz who was slapped with a one-month suspension order.
Foster Anayron, head of the DILG here, said there is no law or an order at the moment as to who would fill in for the suspended vice mayor.
Vera Cruz and most of the city’s councilors received the suspension order from the Office of the Ombudsman that was served by the DILG on Thursday.
The suspended councilors are Samuel Huertas, Eric Capitan, Jesse Ray Balanay, Demosthenes Plando, Belinda Lim, Sorilie Christine Bacsarpa, Ian Yy, Randy Ryan Francis Ong, Bernard Pacana, Petronilo Pardillo, Renato Ancis, and Diamla Rolando So-ong.
Their suspension was a result of the city council’s act of allowing Mayor Celso Regencia to exercise his mayoral functions while he was still under detention in connection with a case filed by former congressman Vicente Belmonte Jr.. The case stemmped from the attempt on Belmonte’s life in 2014.
The suspension order was served right after the city council held its session.
Although Day 1 of the suspension order started on Thursday, Anayron said the city council’s session that day remained a “legal session.”
Only two members of the city council were not suspended. They are Rosevi “Queenie” Belmonte and Caesarve Siacor.
Belmonte’s father Vicente Jr. is one of the complainants in the case for simple misconduct that resulted in the issuance of the suspension order.
On Thursday, supporters of Mayor Regencia, Vera Cruz and the other suspended officials flocked to the city hall grounds, many dressed in red, in an effort to stop the DILG.
Cooler heads prevailed and the crowd let the DILG group pass their way unhampered along with police officers to serve the ombudsman’s order.
Vera Cruz, a Roman Catholic priest, said there was another case filed against him for dereliction of duty because he did not assume as mayor when Regencia was placed under suspension. He said it was dismissed.
He said he and the other suspended officials would follow following the rule of law, and would look for legal remedies.
But right now, Vera Cruz said, he would take what he called as a “much needed rest,” and visit the grave of his father.
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