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Vice Gov. Greg Sanchez said he plans to resign as vice chairman of One Cebu, the party of Gov. Gwen Garcia.
The last straw was the announcement by Garcia and her brother, Rep. Pablo John Garcia of Cebu's 3rd district, of the entry of rival Tuburan town officials into the local party last August.
?It seems I'm of no importance to One Cebu. What shall I do? The only thing for me to do is to leave One Cebu,? Sanchez told CEBU DAILY NEWS.
Sanchez, whose? hometown is Tuburan, cited three reasons for his impending resignation: His opposition to the entry of rival Tuburan officials into One Cebu, the non-implementation of his Transaxial Highway project and the Balili land purchase fiasco.
Sanchez said he would wait until the Garcias formally announce the entry of Tuburan Mayor Constancio Suez and wife, Vice Mayor Rose Suezo to Once Cebu before tendering his resignation.
?If they let the Suezos enter, then I'll be really out. Dili na gyud ko sa One Cebu... When they officially say that the Suezos are already part of One Cebu then I'll resign from One Cebu.?
When reached for comment, Pablo John said he scheduled a meeting with Sanchez next week to discuss the situation in Tuburan.
Asked if the meeting was meant to prevent Sanchez from leaving, he replied in a text message: ?We will try everything humanly possible. But of course there's a limit.?
The vice governor said he may retire from politics and focus on his business when he leaves One Cebu.
Another option is to run for governor either as an independent candidate or under a political group.
Sanchez admitted that he was talking with people from the Nacionalista Party (NP) of Sen. Manuel Villar and the Liberal Party (LP) of Sen. Benigno ?Noynoy? Aquino Jr.
The vice governor said he may join his friend, Eduardo Gullas of Cebu's 1st district, who is supporting the presidential bid of Villar.
?I'm in discussion with some people now but nothing is final. We will know later... A lot of political developments will happen in the next three weeks,? he said.
Sanchez raised the possibility that he would join a coalition of two political parties, depending on the outcome of their talks.
Pablo John said Sanchez' opposition to Suezos' entry to One City could be discussed.
?The vice governor has been saying that we should talk about it. But you cannot go into talks if the position (of the other camp) is non-negotiable. But we will still try to resolve that problem,? he added.
The congressman said the Suezos had pledged support to him and the governor.
?We are quietly working to resolve the situation in Tuburan,? he added.
Sanchez skipped the Governor's Ball on Aug. 5 and the founding day program on Aug. 6 because he was offended by the governor's plan to invite the Suezos into the One Cebu group.
When he asked if she was accepting the Suezos, the governor replied ?murag ana, vice gov (something like that).?
Sanchez said he also felt offended that the Garcias seemed to cast him aside and would make party decision without consulting him.
The latest was the entry of Toledo officials to One Cebu.
Sanchez said he read only in Cebu Daily News that Toledo Mayor Arlene Zambo and her father, Vice Mayor Rudy Espinosa had joined One Cebu.
Zambo and her father used to be allies of former senator John ?Sonny? Osmeña and former 3rd district Rep. Antonio Yapha.
Again, Sanchez was not consulted about the decision of Pablo John and Gwen to field Balamban Mayor Alex Binghay as a candidate for Provincial Board member together with reelectionist PB member Ian Zambo in the 3rd district.
The vice governor said t his opposition to the Suezos' entry to the administration group was ?non-negotiable?.
He said that while he had no grudge against Mayor Suezo and wife, Vice Mayor Suezo, he did not like their ?brand of politics? and alleged failure to curb the proliferation of drugs and crime in his hometown.
Sanchez said there were instances in the past when he asked Pablo John for a meeting but was merely promised to hold one. But the meeting never took place.
Sanchez said he also sent him a text message to early yesterday morning to ask for an update on his concerns against the Suezo's entry into the One Cebu party.
Pablo John replied that he would sit down with the vice governor on Nov. 4 if the latter was available.
When Sanchez asked for the venue and time of their meeting, Pablo John replied: ?I'll try to arrange it with the governor. Will text you soon.?
?I personally feel that I'm of no value to One Cebu as its vice chairman. It's about time that I leave One Cebu,? Sanchez told CDN.
One Cebu has a pending application with the Comelec for accreditation as a political party.
The application is with the national office, said Provincial Election Supervisor Lionel Marco Castillano.
Also up for accreditation is One Bisaya as a partylist group with Pablo John's mother, retired judge Esperanza Garcia as first nominee.
The Comelec Cebu office was asked to verify the existence of One Bisaya and One Cebu, a requirement for accreditation.
?Last week, we submitted our verification report to our regional office. It will be up to the regional office to forward it to Manila,? he told CDN.
If One Cebu? s application as a political party is approved, it would have the right to ask for a copu of the election returns in next year's election.
