TODAY'S WORLD

WILL THE DEFECTION OF THE top City Councilor to the opposition hurt incumbent Mayor Dennis Socrates� chance of getting a fresh political mandate?

The answer looms this week as Puerto Princesa braces for its first ever recall elections on September 7. Challenging Socrates are former Mayor Edward Hagedorn and neophyte Sandy Sandoval. Pundits are split on who will emerge the winner but are generally agreed that whoever will control the vast rural electoral votes spread out in the City�s 66 barangays will emerge victorious.

On the 11th hour prior to polling date, Councilor Feliboy Oliveros dropped a bombshell on his erstwhile allies by announcing his defection to the camp of Hagedorn. Oliveros, son of the former mayor Feliberto Oliveros, was the top vote getter in last year�s regular elections.

Oliveros however clarified that his decision was prompted by the distrust of the Socrates camp about his loyalty. �It is not appropriate na tawagin na nag-jump ako ng partido. Sila ang nagpaalis at nagtaboy sa akin dahil isa daw akong �deep penetration agent�. Pinaghinalaan nila ang father ko na supporter na ni Sandoval at hindi daw ako karapat-dapat sa grupo,� Oliveros said.

Meanwhile, the camp of Mayor Socrates� has not abandoned a last minute intervention by the Supreme Court to stop the elections through the issuance of a temporary restraining order which will allow them to buy time and eventually scuttle the recall bid launched by disgruntled barangay captains months ago. �We are still hoping to block the recall elections,� Socrates said in his State of the City address early this week. He added, however, that they are prepared to do battle if the high court throws out their petition.

Board member Antonio Alvarez, who expressed his support to Socrates, admitted that the incumbent�s camp had missed a chance to argue its case successfully in the Comelec en banc. �There had been many loopholes in the preparatory recall assembly,� Alvarez said. He added that as an official observer sent by the provincial government to oversee the PRA, he noted that the resolution calling for a recall assembly was �napalusot� or forced.

Hagedorn and Sandoval, meantime, parted ways as erstwhile allies during the PRA process to launch their respective campaigns. Hagedorn has begun aiming his campaign against Socrates, with paid political advertisements over local radio. Supporters of Hagedorn have also attacked the Socrates administration�s move to reorganize key department personnel at the City Hall prior to election campaign period.

Former Southern Philippines Council for Peace and Development (SPCPD) Assemblyman Al Babao is batting for a Hagedorn win, saying this will be fueled by �disappointment with the present administration after a year and almost two months in position.�

His sentiment is shared by former City Council Gil Acosta, a campaign supporter of Sandoval who is aiming to bounce back from a poor third place finish in the last regular elections for mayor. Acosta said the recall elections would not have materialized �if only the chief executive of the city just paid attention and resolved those needs of the people from the barangay and from the different sectors who had asked for help.