Occidental Mindoro execs seek legal fix for clash

Rival politicians in Occidental Mindoro exploit legal remedies after a court stopped the governor’s order to suspend the mayor and almost all other elected officials in  San Jose town.

San Jose Mayor Jose Villarosa, who was ordered suspended for 60 days along with his vice mayor and six of eight municipal councilors, said they would press administrative charges for abuse of authority in the Office of the Ombudsman against Gov. Josephine Ramirez-Sato, who signed the suspension order, and the members of the provincial board who recommended their suspension.

On the other hand, Sato said they were “carefully studying” their next move, although a source in the provincial government said they might sue the judge, who issued the temporary restraining order (TRO) that prevented them from enforcing the suspension of Villarosa and his fellow town officials.

Sato and the Villarosas are longtime political opponents in the province. Villarosa is the husband of Occidental Mindoro Rep. Amelita Villarosa who is known for her close ties with then President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, while Sato belongs to the Nacionalista Party.

The political brawl started when Mayor Villarosa, in September 2011, appointed a replacement to the barangay council of Camburay, after one of its councilmen died. The barangay officials, led by barangay chief Gil Sorel, however, refused to accept the mayor’s appointee and recommended, as provided in the Local Government Code, another person to fill in the vacancy.

Seen as an act of defiance by the barangay chief, the municipal council ordered Sorel suspended. Sorel lodged a complaint in the provincial board and accused Villarosa and the municipal officials of abusing their authority.

The provincial board in June issued a resolution suspending Villarosa and the San Jose officials after the respondents failed to submit themselves to the board’s investigation.

Villarosa, in a phone interview, reasoned that the summons was “illegally served” since it was delivered through a courier service.

On June 27, Sato sent a representative to serve the suspension order at the San Jose municipal hall but was prevented when Judge Jose Jacinto Jr. of the Regional Trial Court Branch 45, on that same day, issued a 72-hour TRO. The court later amended the TRO, extending it to 20 days.

Ulysses Feraren, director of the provincial office of the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG), said mayors have the power to impose suspensions upon the recommendation of the municipal council, as in the case of Villarosa suspending Sorel, or of Sato suspending Villarosa.

However, Feraren said their hands are tied by a DILG circular that prevents them from acting on the case unless ordered by the local government secretary.

With a TRO still in effect, “we’ll just have to wait and see what happens next,” Feraren said.

Sato questioned the court-issued TRO, saying the provincial board has the sole jurisdiction over the administrative case. “If (the camp of Villarosa) felt aggrieved they should appeal it to the Office of the President,” she said.

Meanwhile, Villarosa cried political harassment and promised to defy Sato’s “illegal procedures.”

Both officials maintained that the political clash does not affect government transactions in San Jose.