The only political involvement Grecylda “Gigi” Sanchez-Zaballero will have on behalf of her late father, Cebu vice governor Gregorio Sanchez Jr., is on his pending election and administrative cases.
Gigi distributed copies of a telegram sent by the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) office on a preliminary conference and formal investigation into Sanchez’s administrative complaint to local media yesterday.
Sanchez’s complaint of grave misconduct and abuse of authority filed against Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia stemmed from her move to reduce the budget of the vice governor’s office and the Provincial Board (PB).
Sanchez considered the budget cuts as an encroachment into the legislative department’s authority.
Gigi, who runs the family-owned LactoPafi pharmaceutical business, received the DILG letter last Monday.
The agency scheduled the preliminary conference and investigation on June 6 to 9 at its regional office.
Governor Garcia said she has yet to receive the notice.
“If my attendance is required then I shall react accordingly,” she said.
Gigi said this administrative complaint and the election protest case filed by businessman Glenn Soco define her scope of political involvement in her late father’s affairs. She said she has no plans to enter public office.
For now, Gigi said the public should be apprised of Sanchez’s administrative complaint.
“Not anyone ever mentioned this investigation against the governor. It is a matter of public interest,” she said.
She said her family will pursue the resolution of the election protest case filed by Soco even without the intervention of Vice Gov. Agnes Magpale.
Magpale received a memorandum last Tuesday from the Commission on Elections (Comelec) asking for any intervention on Soco’s election protest.
The vice governor said she won’t file an intervention on the case.
She said she will just wait on the Comelec recount to determine the winner of last year’s elections.
Magpale said she will step down if Soco is declared winner and will continue serving Sanchez’s unfinished term if his election victory is affirmed.
“They still insist that Glenn won? You mean my dad cheated? Meaning my dad is not the vice governor?…I opted to be silent, but now I won’t…You know I never joined politics. I am new to this but this election protest isn’t right,” she said.
Gigi said the family will commemorate the 40th day of her father’s death with a Mass at the Mactan Memorial Gardens on June 7, the same day they will attend the DILG inquiry.
The Sanchez family will be represented by the late vice governor’s Oliveros Kintanar.
Gigi said their family will come in “full force” during the inquiry.