Mayor-elect Quiño, council take over despite poll protest

Supporters of Compostela Mayor-elect Joel Quiño arrived in front of the municipal hall on board four-wheel trucks at 6 a.m. yesterday to hold a rally and a Mass to voice anew their support to him and his councilors who are facing an election protest.

Three hours later, things went out of hand.

Three men went to the municipal hall and broke the padlock on the front door.

Compostela police went to the area to maintain order and asked the followers to stay calm.

At 10 a.m., Quiño arrived at the municipal hall on board a motorcycle and went to the veranda.

His arrival encouraged his followers to enter the building.

Quiño told Senior Insp. Rodrigo Giangan, Compostela police chief, that he will assume office.

Quiño insisted that he would rather be handcuffed and jailed than leave the municipal hall, a pronouncement that was cheered on by his supporters.

‘Useless’

The cheers grew louder when his allies Vice Mayor-elect Nenette Dayong and the councilors arrived at the hall.

The officials went to the veranda and raised their hands, drawing more cheers from their supporters.

Dayong told reporters that she and the council won’t leave Quiño’s side and were willing to be jailed for joining him.

At past 2 p.m., Jerome Gonzales, a caretaker appointed by the Department of Interior and Local Governments in Central Visayas (DILG-7), met with Quiño and his officials to listen to their grievances.

A heated conversation ensued between councilor-elect Tessa Cang and Gonzales when she claimed that the DILG presence in Compostela town is “useless.”

“Your presence in the town worsens the problem,” Cang told Gonzales.

Joven Amor, Association of Barangay Captains (ABC) president, said the town lacked basic social services such as waste management, street lighting repairs and a rise in petty crimes owing to the absence of its local officials.

As of 7 p.m. yesterday, Quiño and the rest of the councilors still remained at the municipal hall.

‘Respect the law’

Food in Styrofoam packages were distributed among Quiño’s supporters.

Cabadiangan barangay captain Mario Paradiang told Cebu Daily News that they just wanted the Comelec to immediately resolve the election protest filed by defeated mayoralty candidate Ritchie Wagas against Quiño and the council.

The election protest upheld by the Comelec denied Quiño and the council from assuming their posts since last year.

“Dili na namo maantos nga mag-tuig na (We cannot endure this any longer, it’s been a year already,” Paradiang said.

Gonzales told Cebu Daily News that he is giving hourly updates to Interior and Local Governments Secretary Jesse Robredo on the Compostela situation.

DILG-7 Director Pedro Noval called on Quiño and his supporters to wait for the Comelec decision.

“I appeal to Quino to lead his supporters to follow the law and not to take the law into their hands…I appeal to them to stay calm and uphold the law,” Noval said.

He asked Quiño and the officials to leave the municipal hall and wait for the Comelec decision on their case.

Unethical

Otherwise, he said, police will have to move them out by force.

“All our office can do is to follow up and ask Comelec to resolve the issue as soon as possible,” Noval said in a radio interview.

Senior Supt. Patrocinio Comendador, Cebu provincial police chief, ordered the deployment of personnel from police precincts in nearby towns and two Special Reaction Unit (SRU) teams to beef up the Compostela police force in maintaining peace and order in the town.

Senior Supt. Louie Oppus, deputy regional chief for operations of the Police Regional Office (PRO-7), asked Quiño and Wagas followers not to stir up trouble.

About 20 supporters of former mayor Wagas held vigil next to the Compostela fire precinct.

Former Poblacion barangay captain Rachel Wagas told Cebu Daily News that Quiño’s supporters have been holding rallies in front of the municipal hall nearly everday.

The barangay official, who described the takeover as “unethical,” said she urged the former mayor’s followers to stay calm and not do anything to provoke Quiño’s followers.

Resignation

Quino, an ally of Rep. Ramon Durano VI of Cebu’s 5th district, assumed office last June 30 after taking his oath last June 28.

But the Comelec upheld Wagas’ election protest and nullified the proclamation of Quiño and his slate.

In his election protest, Wagas cited discrepancies in the results of the automated elections in Compostela.

He secured the Comelec order ruling on July 1, a day after Quiño assumed office.

On July 2010, DILG picked Noval as caretaker mayor of Compostela. Noval resigned and allowed Provincial DILG officer Jerome Gonzales to take over the post.

A month after his assumption, Gonzales tendered a resignation letter to DILG head office stating that he can no longer juggle two jobs. With Correspondent Gabriel C. Bonjoc