Reporters’ Notebook
Davao City
Payback time for Digong accuser
THE MAN who, at a crucial stage of the election campaign, accused a son and daughter-in-law of presumptive President-elect Rodrigo Duterte of involvement in smuggling is now facing the wrath of the incoming leader’s daughter-in-law who vowed to press charges against their accuser.
January Duterte, wife of Davao City Vice Mayor Paolo Duterte, broke her silence and said the family is now consulting lawyers and preparing criminal cases against Perfecto Tagalog, who represented the group Coalition of Filipino Farmers.
A few days before the end of the campaign, Tagalog accused Paolo, January, ex-National Food Authority chief Lito Banayo and businessman Davidson Bangayan (a.k.a. David Tan) of involvement in the smuggling of rice and other products at the Davao port.
In a press conference, Tagalog said the smuggling ring brings in not just rice but also used clothes and electronic products.
“In the remaining days of the campaign, there had been a barrage of accusations against my husband and I,” said January.
“We have remained silent for we knew those were meant to discredit our family,” to try to pull down Duterte, who gained an insurmountable lead in popularity surveys just days before the elections.
“But we, as a family, were hurting and suffering in silence because of the accusations,” January said in a statement.
January is currently village chair and head of the Association of Barangay Councils in the city, which earned her a seat in the city council.
Tagalog, she said, accused her of smuggling used clothes and “other articles.”
“I was shocked as I was never into any business involving the sale of imported goods,” she said.
The accusation, she added, “spread like wildfire in our community” bringing anguish to her daughter and husband.
With the election campaign over, January said that it was payback time.
“We have decided to take action against Mr. Tagalog and all those who were in conspiracy with him,” said January.
“I will seek justice for my family,” she said. Karlos Manlupig, Inquirer Mindanao
Marinduque
Marinduque winners proclaimed
WITH RESULTS from Sta. Cruz town coming in on Saturday, the provincial board of canvassers completed the proclamation of all winning candidates in the island province on Sunday, almost a week after the elections.
The proclamation was delayed because ballots intended for Sarangani province were delivered to Barangay Alobo in Sta. Cruz, prompting the Commission on Elections (Comelec) to schedule a special election on Saturday.
Leading the winners were Rep. Lord Allan Jay Velasco of the National Unity Party and Gov. Carmencita Reyes of the Liberal Party, who both ran for reelection.
Present during Velasco’s proclamation were his parents, Supreme Court Associate Justice Presbitero Velasco Jr. and newly elected Torrijos Mayor Lorna Velasco.
The congressional race reprised the 2013 contest between Velasco and Regina Reyes, daughter of Governor Reyes.
The House of Representatives Election Tribunal (HRET) swore in the younger Reyes as the winner of the 2013 race despite a Comelec order, which was later affirmed by the Supreme Court, disqualifying her for being an American citizen at the time she was elected to Congress.
The legal battle for the lone congressional seat of Marinduque ended in February this year after Velasco was sworn in as the duly elected representative of the province, two days before Congress adjourned for the campaign period in this year’s elections.
In the gubernatorial race, the elder Reyes received 57,807 votes against Victoria Lim’s (independent) 34,850 votes and Melecio Go’s (Nacionalista Party) 12,931 votes.
Velasco received 60,759 votes against the younger Reyes’ 49,252 votes. Jofel Joyce Lancion, Inquirer Southern Luzon
