LUCENA CITY—Residents in this city are in a dilemma with tension running high in opposing political camps with the city now having two mayors holding office in separate City Halls.
This after Vice Mayor Roderick Alcala took his oath of office as the new city mayor despite the refusal of unseated Mayor Barbara Ruby Talaga to abide by the order of the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) for her to step down after the Commission on Elections ruled that her election in May 2010 was illegal and invalid.
Alcala took his oath of office before Lucena Regional Trial Court Judge Joselito Tamaray at 3:30 p.m. on Friday at the city’s old City Hall, the city’s legislative building where the city council holds its regular session, and began holding office there as the city’s new mayor even as Talaga continued to be holed up at her office at the new City Hall, which are about 1.5 kilometers apart.
At least about 2,000 supporters of Talaga who have formed a human barricade at the new City Hall since Thursday have refused to leave the area for as long as the unseated mayor remained holed up in her office.
Followers of Alcala, on the other hand, have also decided to go in mass to the old City Hall as a show of support to the new mayor.
Alcala assumed the mayoral post after Comelec representatives posted at the new City Hall building’s bulletin board the order unseating Talaga from office and without waiting for the completion of the serving of a DILG order to Mayor Talaga.
“We were told by a Comelec official from Manila that there is no need for him (Alcala) to wait for the DILG. The posting of the Comelec order has already perfected the process,” said the source from the commission who requested anonymity for lack of authority to speak to the media.
Mayor Talaga has earlier refused to receive the order hand-carried by Comelec representatives.
She said she also would refuse to receive the order from the DILG for her to vacate the post. The DILG central office representatives carrying the order were expected to arrive in this city at around 6 p.m.
Ramon Talaga Jr., the husband of Barbara and the former mayor of the city, warned that should their political foe Alcala insist that he was now the mayor, the city would have two performing mayors.
“Lucena will have two mayors because my wife will not vacate her post,” Ramon told reporters.
A staff of the city mayor’s office was spotted preparing the steel chain that would be used to lock the main door to prevent the entry of DILG and Comelec representatives.
Throngs of agitated supporters of Talaga were still gathered in front of the City Hall building along M . Tagarao road, causing traffic jams, as they vowed to serve as human barricades to prevent the entry of the order servers.