The title means reflecting or pondering. It suggests that the column reflects and ponders on issues. In this case, it's about politics and local governance.

Recall Election Petition in Taguig,A Petty Political Feud?

To steer clear of the mind-boggling events around the world especially the impending war between Iraq and U. S., let us momentarily shift our focus on politics and governance in the local scene. These are days of numerous crises and we see attempts to disrupt the peace and order of communities. One highly suspenseful drama is the petition for recall election in Taguig. The Commission on Elections (Comelec) is expected to decide on the petition anytime now.

To give you a brief backgrounder on the case, several barangay officials, mostly supporters of Taguig-Pateros Rep. Alan Peter Cayetano signed a resolution to oust Mayor Sigfrido " Freddie" Tinga citing the latter's incompetence and the people's loss of confidence. The petition was approved by 84 of the 162-member Preparatory Recall Assembly and was filed in Comelec as early as September last year. At least 82 votes are needed for the petition to move.

The move to unseat Mayor Tinga is backed up by the family's major political rival - the Cayetanos. The Tingas and the Cayetanos, two prominent political clans in Taguig, constantly battle for supremacy in the town. The influential Cayetanos of the Upper and Lower Chamber of the House, Senator Rene "Companiero" Cayetano and his son Congressman Alan Peter Cayetano both denied that politics has something to do with the petition.

One of the many issues Tinga's critics raised was that he allegedly appointed several relatives to positions at the municipal hall spending P15 million in the monthly salary of 3,000 casual employees. The Taguig mayor also allegedly entered into questionable multi-million loans and anomalous deals, including overpriced notebooks that were distributed by the municipal government to public schools. The municipal government allegedly bought the notebooks at P40 each when they could be bought for only P5 to P10 each. Tinga, for his part, denied all the accusations saying the local government spent only 17% of the P15 million budget for the payment of salaries of the casual employees. The beleaguered mayor admitted that there are 3,000 employees in the municipal hall. He said that they are not ghost employees and not all of them are casual employees. According to Tinga, most of his relatives currently working in the town hall had already been working there even before he assumed office last year.

Meanwhile, Cayetano's camp is grooming a young U.S.-bred business graduate to the mayoral seat if a recall election pushes through. Rafael Dizon, who shows political aggressiveness at a young age of 32, is the nephew of the former Taguig mayor Ricardo Papa. It would be well remembered that Dizon's father lost the congressional race against the mayor's father, Dante Tinga in 1995.

Although Congressman Cayetano emphasized that politics has nothing to do with the petition, he admitted the mayor's demeanor irritated him. Mayor Tinga refused to implement multi- million projects initiated by Cayetano and even ordered to demolish them. Prior to the recall petition, Tinga and Cayetano had been caught in a petty conflict over who should get credit for their various infrastructure projects.

A consultant from the office of the mayor told me that the Comelec already decided on the case. He said Tinga told them that the Comelec issued a resolution (4-2) in favor of him or denying the petition for recall election. But my further investigation revealed that the Comelec has yet to decide on the petition. The Comelec officer in National Capital Region office I interviewed even said the petition was already forwarded to the head office and now still in the Comelec en-banc. A DILG officer in Taguig whom I spoke with even commented that the Comelec's slow decision on the petition is probably because Congressman Cayetano is still in the U.S. and has yet to go back from his holiday vacation.

Some say that politics is not necessary evil and that good governance should not necessarily be devoid of politics. In this case, it is a different story. We are not focusing here on the merits of Tinga's leadership or his fitness to run the Taguig local government. It is not about the purpose of Cayetano, whether it is a political machination or not. What we are pointing out here is that the major losers in this political brouhaha are the people of Taguig. The issue polarized the people and derailed the basic delivery of services.

Just look at the long stretch of C-5 road in Taguig. Passersby are witnesses to the garbage eyesores that spread in the middle isles and sidewalks of the circumferential road. The smell is equally disgusting, especially for non-air conditioned vehicles or jeepneys plying the area.

There are other ways of removing and punishing local officials who has committed impropriety while in office without disrupting so much the functions of the local government. One way is to file a case in the Ombudsman.

While the Comelec and not the local government shoulders the cost of recall elections, it will definitely use the people's money. The danger of abusing the recall election provisions of the Local Government Code lies in the fact that public money might be used to further the interest of petty political feuds.

About the Author

Marilou Dominguiano works as an Information Officer in a government office and is currently taking her master's in communication at the University of the Philippines She loves books, r'n'b music, lip balm and cardigan sweaters. She is sexy, sweet, smart, pretty and witty. She loves to have a good laugh, though.