Sitoy rival’s building, home face demolition

A THREE-STOREY commercial building and house occupied by a rival will soon be demolished to give way to a road widening project, Cordova Mayor Adelino Sitoy said last Tuesday.

“We have the waiver here signed by Johnson Tan that they will voluntarily remove their structures if the government claims the lot,” the mayor told reporters.

He said the existing Day-as road where the building is located is concreted in two lanes and has a two-meter allowance from the edge of the concreted lane on each side.

In response Tan, an opposition mayoralty candidate debunked Sitoy’s claim and said he will contest the demolition. “I am prepared to fight back. I acquired a clean title of this lot,” he said.

He said it’s not true that part of his building was within the two meter allowance claimed by Sitoy. “The waiver is not within my lot but that’s the additional structures beside the road,” Tan said.

The businessman said the demolition is part of Sitoy’s persecution of political opponents after he initially committed to supporting boxing promoter Rex “Wakee” Salud.

Tan eventually left Salud after the boxing promoter faced uncertainty on the resolution of his legal difficulties over his residency requirement before the Commission on Elections (Comelec).

Sitoy said Tan faces an uphill legal battle to stop the demolition.

“Let’s see if he can fight with the armed forces, it’s a government project, then he will oppose to it?,” he retorted.

Sitoy said the road widening project in Day-as will be partly funded by the pork barrel of Rep. Luigi Quisumbing of Cebu’s 6th district and will be implemented after this year’s elections. Correspondent Norman V. Mendoza