JUNE 21 –– 27, 2010

4 Indians, 6 Capiceños face kidnap-slay raps

      ROXAS CITY ––– Robbery with homicide charges were filed by the police against four Indian nationals and six Capiceños over a kidnap-slay case involving Indian trader Naib Singh, an Iloilo-based trader who was found dead  on May 29 at Mt. Napatagan in Barabgay Sibariwan, Dumarao, Capiz.

      Charged for the death of Naib Singh,38, were Harpreet Singh and three Indians whose names were not disclosed; Sally Besonia, alias Sherly Lago, and her two brothers, Joel and Rio; Edwin Agroda; Felomino Agroda; and Elmer Dime.

      The Criminal Investigation and Detection group (CIDG) in Capiz filed the charges against the suspects on  June 18 before the Iloilo Provincial Prosecutor’s Office, said PO3 Pedro Celino, CIDG-Capiz investigator.

      Two of the Indian nationals were reportedly staying in Barangay Aspera, Sara, Iloilo; the other one lives in Barangay Tanque here.

      The three were also engaged in trading business in Iloilo and Capiz.

      Celino said they have six witnesses, including the victim’s wife Ranjit Kaur and daughter  Pavandeep Kaur.

       The police begged off from divulging the suspects and witnesses’ names for security purposes.

      Singh, a resident of Gran Plains Subdivision in Jaro, Iloilo City, was found dead on May 29 by local residents at Mt. Napatagan in Sitio Ulang, Barangay Sibariwan, some 35 kilometers from Dumarao town proper in Capiz.

      In sworn statements to the CIDG, Ranjit and Pavendeep identified Harpreet Singh and Besonia as the masterminds of the kidnap-slay.

      Ranjit said that, like her husband,  Harpreet Singh was also engaged in a lending business but  got bankrupt later.

       She  said Harpreet even asked her to allow Besonia to work in their house in Jaro, Iloilo city as a  housemaid.

      Ranjit also said Harpreet tried to borrow money from Naib several times but to no avail.

      Ranjit narrated that last May 28 Besonia asked Naib when he will go to Sara to collect the money from his lending business.

      Naib told her that he might do so on May 29.

      Upon learning of this, Besonia asked permission to go to Sara, with an alibi of not being able to do  household chores anymore because of physical pains due to abortion, and asked for her six-day salary.

      Ranjit added she would usually observe Besonia frequently calling and texting someone.

            Initially, Celino said Besonia could not be found, while Harpreet has no permanent address in Iloilo and reportedly went back to India on June 1.

JUNE 14 –– 20, 2010

Bermejo on Celino;  ‘Give him a chance’

Outgoing mayor adopts conciliatory gesture

By Gerry T. Pagharion

      ROXAS CITY –– Outgoing Mayor Vicente Bermejo had nothing but good words for his successor, Mayor-elect Alan Celino,  despite the latter’s continued  “adversarial stance” towards him (see separate story on this page –– ED)

      In a speech at the launching of the Olotayan Island Tour June 10, the outgoing mayor, referring to the joint efforts of the City’s Coastal Resource Management and the community-based Dagat sa Isla Olotayan Sagupon Asosasyon (DIOSA) in making the island barangay a tourist haven said: “I’m confident that our new mayor will support your endeavors.”

      Because of the heat of elections, there were a lot of things said in a negative way, Bermejo had acknowledged.  But since the political exercise is already over, Bermejo said he believes that Celino should be given leeway to “do things on his own way” and that “we should all think positively.”

      “I believe that no one enters public service with a bad intention,” Bermejo said, apparently referring to Celino, who beat him in the May 10 mayoral race by a slight margin of 691 votes.

      Bermejo said he has already instructed department heads to submit “entry reports” to ensure a smooth transition.   These reports, he said, would guide the new city mayor in discharging his “avowed tasks.”

      In what could be his last “coffee talk” with local media men on June 16,  Bermejo, while saying that the recent election was the dirtiest ever in Capiz, said that “the people have spoken and the people have chosen ––– for whatever reasons they may have, I have to abide by it.”

      Bermejo said he was keeping his fingers crossed and hope that the new mayor will succeed as the hope of the people for a better tomorrow “is largely dependent in the occupants of the mayorship of the city.”

      Bermejo said he will leave City Hall in a better financial condition.

      “We will have an unappropriated IRA (internal revenue allotment) share of P31 million that the new mayor can use for his programs.   If God allows that there will be no calamity this year, he (referring to Celino) can also use the calamity fund amounting to P17.7 million effective on the first day of the year,” Bermejo said.

      As of June 15, 2010, Bermejo said, the city has cash in bank amounting to P150.4 million plus IRA receivables of P153-million from July to December 2010.

      The city also has savings of P5.7 million, according to Bermejo.

      The outgoing mayor disclosed that he has issued an executive order organizing a transition team that will prepare a report that has, he said, a two-fold function –– one for Celino to know what he had accomplished “because I know we accomplished a lot even for a short time.”

      The other function, he explained, is to present that report as an entry plan to Celino so that he will know the programs and decide accordingly whether to sustain, amend, revise  and “whatever he pleases to do with it.”

      For 24 years in public service, Bermejo said that he learned a lot of lessons and remember the good words of the late Capiz Gov. Cornelio “Dodoy” Villareal that to be in politics, “one should not put all your feet inside for it would be difficult for you to get out. One should not pin everything in politics so that it would be easier to quit at appointed time.”

      He said that his only regret (in losing) in the election is that he would not be able to continue the numerous projects he had started which could have made a difference in the development of the city. For three years, Bermejo said he has demonstrated the physical, social and economic improvements of the city by using local funds. 

      The mayor said that losing in the race does not give him sleepless nights.  It’s his inability, he said, to protect the plight of those who have supported him now facing the “threats of persecution.”

      As he retires to private life, Bermejo said he will leave a legacy of good governance founded on the people’s interest and genuine concern for their welfare.”        

JUNE 7–– 13, 2010

Money did me in — Bermejo

By Gerry T. Pagharion

   ROXAS CITY –– Mayor Vicente Bermejo of the Ugyon Kita Capiz said he   has   accepted  his loss to Liberal Party  mayoral candidate Alan Celino in the recent  May 10 elections.  But he  attributed his defeat  to  the enormous campaign funds put up against him by his erstwhile  LP allies.

   “It no longer matters whether you are a good leader.  Money now decides the polls,” Bermejo said  in an interview with The Capiz Times.  He was   referring to the massive vote-buying practice resorted to by the Roxases.  

   LP stalwarts Sen. Mar Roxas and his mother Judy Araneta-Roxas  have reportedly made the huge campaign funds of the LP  available to their ward leaders prior to and during the May 10 elections just to ensure Bermejo’s defeat in his reelection bid.

   The mother and son, who claimed to be responsible for  Bermejo’s more than 20 years of foray into Capiz politics,  have on several occasions “poured out”  their deep  frustration over the alleged betrayal of  Bermejo when he   decided to ally himself with the Ugyon Kita Capiz, a newly formed local political party, months before the May 10 elections.    

   Bermejo, who at first looked very much  confident of his victory owing to the fact that he had 36 incumbent barangay captains out of the 47 practically at his beck and call, was caught flat-footed at the last hour by the “tsunami of money” released by the Roxases.  This was seen as a crucial  factor that eventually  turned the tide in LP’s favor.

   He confirmed that many barangay officials have turned their backs on him “for money.”

   On the assertion that he is just a “creation of the Roxases,” Bermejo said they (the Roxases) have also used him to serve their political ends.

   He recalled that in the 1998 elections, the Roxases fielded him for the Capiz governorship to defeat then incumbent Capiz Gov. Esteban Contreras, who left the LP that time and aligned himself with the ruling Lakas.

   The Roxases also fielded him as a candidate  in 2007 to prevent the opposition  from wrestling the top City Hall post, he said.    

   Meanwhile,  Bermejo  said that with  the highly-tensed elections now  over,  he “feels  relieved” for he can now go back to normal life.

   When asked how much he spent to bankroll his reelection bid, Bermejo cited the amount of P8-million.  This was way below the P60-million shelled out by the LP, he claimed.  

   But an LP ally expressed doubts on Bermejo’s claim that he only spent P8-million.  “I think it’s more than.”

   What will he do after bowing out of public office?

   Interviewed at his office 22 days after the May 11 polls,  Bermejo said “life must go on” and that  he would now be able “to take care of whatever I have.”

   Bermejo, at first, refused to be interviewed, saying he would hold a “coffee talk” among  media  people in  “due time.” He gave in though  when prodded by this reporter.

   The outgoing mayor has been making himself scarce for media interviews since the May 11 elections, which saw his defeat to Celino by 69l votes.

   Bermejo said his family still  owns the Rural Bank of Panay and the Rural Bank of Cuartero.  He also has some 13 hectares of fishpond property to attend to.

   The outgoing mayor also hinted    he would go into real estate development through the subdivision business.

   If ever, Bermejo said, he found comfort in the fact that those who voted for him really did so out of love and loyalty (to him) as well their  strong belief in his capacity as a leader and  not because of   monetary considerations.

    Bermejo said he was aware of the fact that a number of his  supporters  cried on learning about his defeat.

   Celino, he noted, edged him out by only 691 votes.  Most of those who voted for Celino, he said, came from slum areas or those who can easily be swayed by money owing to their poor  economic condition.

   Now, Bermejo said, he realizes that being a good leader is not enough to propel him –– or any candidate for that matter ––– to victory.

   He could not,  as yet, say  on what his  future political plans will be.

            Meanwhile, to  prevent this reporter from asking more questions, Bermejo  stood up and gestured to leave this office.  This reporter had no choice but to cut short the interview.

MAY 31 –– JUNE 6, 2010

Move on to unseat Acervo

 Alisasis given go-signal by new mayor

BY GERYY T. PAGHARION

      ROXAS CITY – The move is on to unseat Roxas City Liga ng mga Barangay president Wilson Acervo  and have him replaced by Brgy. Captain Solomon Alisasis of Libas.

      Acervo, barangay chair of Mongpong, is identified with incumbent Mayor Vicente Bermejo of Ugyon Kita Capiz who lost his reelection bid to LP mayoral bet Alan Celino in the recently-concluded May 10 elections.

      Acervo’s term  of office as the City Liga head  expires in October this year but  Celino  wants him replaced earlier than that, according to Alisasis.

      Alisasis said Celino paid him a visit last week during which he sounded to him  the idea of unseating Acervo.                           “Mayor Celino, as I now call him, told me to prepare (for the Liga presidency)  and get the commitment of at least 17 barangay captains in the city, “ Alisasis told The Capiz Times in an interview.

      Out of the city’s  47 barangay chairmen, only 11 are identified with the LP who will likely support Alisasis’ bid  for the top Liga post.  The rest are identified with the UKC. 

      But Alisasis is hopeful that, with the able support of Celino and the party,  he would be able to win over a number of barangay captains to his side in due time.

According to him, he is going around the city trying to court his fellow barangay captains to support his cause and impart to them the message of  the new city mayor.  Celino’s  message is that he   is opening the doors of City Hall to all barangay captains  who are willing to work with his administration.

      Alisasis said  Celino is adopting this “non-vindictive” stance in dealing with barangay officials.  For him, he said, he welcomes this attitude of the new mayor because he did not want other barangay officials to experience what he had experienced in the hands of what he called a “vindictive official.”

      Meanwhile, Acervo said he welcomes the move of those from the LP to unseat him even though his term will expire in October.

      He explained that Alisasis needs the votes of 36 (three fourths)  out of the 47 barangay captains in the city in order to unseat him.

      The process, he said, will also have to pass through the approval of the provincial Liga federation under the leadership of its president Clemente “Budong”  Firmalino, who is Acervo’s ally at Ugyon Kita Capiz.

      Interviewed over Wesfardells’ Budyong Kapehan, Acervo hinted that  he was willing to cooperate with the Celino administration in the same manner that he supported the administrations of then Mayors Antonio del Rosario and Bermejo.

      “If it was for the good of the people and everybody, then there’s no problem with me,” Acervo said.

            Acervo acknowledged  Celino’s right to  choose the people he wants to work with, although, he said, the barangay election was  approaching and it’s proper to wait for that time for any reorganization efforts.