Tom O calls Team Rama ‘cowards’ for filing disqualification cases

“COWARDS.”

This was how Rep. Tomas Osmeña described Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama and lawyer Jocelyn Pesquera for initiating the disqualification case against Augustus “June” Pe Jr. of the Bando Osmeña- Pundok Kauswagan (BO-PK).

“Don’t be a coward. Let people decide. If Jun Pe still wins (in next year’s election) let them accept it,” said Osmeña in an interview.

Team Rama south district candidates Ronald Diola and Tisha Ylaya-Gonzalez acted as complainants in the disqualification case which lawyers Delon Urot and Pesquera filed with the Comelec Manila on Wednesday.

They questioned how Pe, a city councilor on his third and last term, transferred his voters registration from the north district to the south district where he filed his Certificate of Candidacy as city councilor to circumvent term limits.

The Cebu City Council has 16 elected councilors, half for the north district and half for the south.

A separate complaint against Pe and City Councilor Raul Alcoseba was also filed by Team Rama before the Dept. of Interior and Local Government (DILG).

The DILG was asked to bar both councilors from finishing their terms since they filed their COC in another political jurisdiction. Alcoseba is seeking a seat in the Cebu Provincial Board representing the 1st district.

Pesquera is also asking the provincial chairman of the Liberal Party (LP) Hilario “Junjun” Davide III to impose “party discipline”on Pe and Alcoseba by have them “resign from their positions, out of delicadeza.”

“They should follow the president’s slogan of daang matuwid,” said Pesquera.

Sought for comment on the cases, Osmeña said: “Since when did Joy Pesquera become a judge? She is jumping to conclusions. It’s not the same constituency (whose votes they will court in the election).”

Osmeña said Pe and Alcoseba should be allowed to run.

“Why don’t we let the people decide?”

Osmeña said that Pe’s case especially is new.

“We can argue if its regular or irregular even for a decade because there is no clear jurisprudence. So why don’t we let the people decide?”

“Let’s put it in another way, mga talawan. Hadlok sila sa mga tao,” he said.

(They’re cowards. They are afraid of the people.)

Osmeña said that BO-PK also has grounds to seek the disqualification of Team Rama north district candidate Annabelle Rama, a showbiz talent manager.

But he said they held back to give BO-PK candidate Raul del Mar an opponent.

Earlier, Comelec Regional Director for Central Visayas Timie Lambino said the case against Pe would enrich election jurisprudence.