Resigning from his post as city councilor representing Cebu’s north district won’t disqualify him from “seeking employment” in the south district.
So said a reply issued by Cebu City Councilor Augustus Pe Jr. to the Commission on Elections (Comelec) that he submitted in response to a recent petition for his disqualification.
In his reply to the Comelec last Monday, Pe said the complaint against him had no merit.
Pe, who’s aligned with the administration Bando Osmeña-Pundok Kauswagan (BO-PK), said a preliminary conference on his case was reset to Nov. 9.
In an interview, Pe said he already expected the complaint against him even if it would become inconvenient for him. “My budget for posters would be affected,” he said.
Team Rama candidates Tisha Ylaya– Gonzalez and Ronald Diola petitioned for Pe’s disqualification by citing his failure to meet the residency requirement and the three term limit for elected officials.
Pe admitted in his reply that he used to be a resident of Cebu City’s north district where he was elected councilor for three consecutive terms of three years each.
But since he lived in barangay Guadalupe for the last two years, he applied for transfer of his Comelec registration to the south district last April 3 which was approved by the Comelec Cebu City office.
After serving in the north district, Pe said he wants to “apply for work” among voters in the south district.
He added that when he filed his candidacy last Oct. 5 he also considered resigning from his post.
But legal experts whom he consulted told him that resignation was not needed to to qualify for employment in the south district.
“My transfer of residence won’t be a hindrance to my work as representative of the north district,” Pe said. Chief of Reporters Doris C. Bongcac