CEBU CITY?The camp of former Mandaue City Mayor Thadeo Ouano decried on Wednesday the singling out of local officials in the filing of cases and investigation of the overpriced purchase of lampposts, which was a national government project.

Ouano?s daughter, Emmarie Ouano-Dizon, who spoke on his behalf, noted that the lamppost project was funded by the national government. Dizon added that the bidding was also done by the national government.

Even if her father signed the program of works and estimates, Dizon said, it had no bearing on the implementation of the project.

She noted that while Ouano and Lapu-Lapu City Mayor Arturo Radaza signed the program of works and estimates, and Cebu City Mayor Tomas Osmeña did not, Cebu City still got the lampposts. This meant, Dizon said, that the role played by her father and Radaza was only ministerial.

?So, why was the investigation focused only on local officials,? she asked.

Dizon said they did not want to name any officials in the national level.

Ouano?s legal counsel, Gloria Lastimosa-Dalawampu, was more outspoken. In an interview on Tuesday, Dalawampu told reporters that it was unfair for the Ombudsman not to include national officials, like Public Works Secretary Hermogenes Ebdane, since the project was initiated by the national government.

?Why not include the national officials? Why was Ebdane not included in the investigation?? Dalawampu asked.

However, Deputy Ombudsman for the Visayas Pelagio Apostol clarified that there was another fact-finding investigation conducted by his office on the lamppost controversy to determine the possible involvement of other officials, including those in the national level.

But Apostol refused to disclose the names of the officials under investigation, saying the fact-finding investigation was confidential.