MANILA, Philippines – Makati Mayor Jejomar Erwin “Junjun” Binay on Thursday questioned the letter of the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) to the Land Bank of the Philippines Makati Branch saying that his suspension for six months has removed his authority to sign city fund disbursements.
Meeting with reporters at his office on the 21st floor of the City Hall, Binay questioned why DILG National Capital Region (NCR) Director Renato Brion had to write the letter when the agency was only tasked to implement the suspension order.
“And if (Romulo ‘Kid’) Peña believes that he is really the mayor, then he should have written and sent the letter himself to the LandBank,” Binay said, questioning why the DILG seemed to be “representing Makati.”
He added the agency seemed to be unsure if Peña was the acting mayor so it sent the letter to the bank.
“They have gone beyond the order of the Ombudsman. They are doing acts beyond the implementation of order,” Binay said, tagging Brion’s letter “illegal.”
In his correspondence sent to the LandBank branch on March 18, Brion cited the suspension order from the Office of the Ombudsman and the legal opinion of the Department of Justice (DOJ) on the matter in stressing that Peña has become “the authorized signatory of all disbursements of the city as of March 16, 2015.”
The DOJ said that the temporary restraining order of the Court of Appeals (CA) “is without legal force and effect because it is already moot and academic, the acts sought to be restrained having already been performed and accomplished.”
It added that Peña should continue dispensing his duties as acting mayor of Makati and exercising the powers of the office since he was already sworn into office after the suspension order was served.
Binay again appealed to Interior Secretary Mar Roxas to respect the rule of law and avoid creating confusion in the city.
He added that the intervention of the DILG with the LandBank could affect the release of the salaries of the City Hall employees.
“The employees of the city should not be affected by the issue,” Binay added.
Binay also claimed that a similar letter was sent by the DILG to the Commission on Audit and the Civil Service Commission.