SAN Antonio, Nueva Ecija—The Sangguniang Bayan here has expelled Councilor Renan Ponce P. Morales for failing to attend 10 consecutive municipal council regular sessions and going absent without filing any official leave.
The town’s number one councilor, Morales was linked to a foiled assassination attempt on Mayor Arvin C. Salonga, after an arrested ex-policeman tagged him as the alleged mastermind. The bounty on the mayor’s head was reported to be P5 million.
Morales ran as an independent in the 2016 local elections.
In a four-page resolution dated Sept. 4, the 10-man council led by Vice Mayor Julieta E. Maxwell imposed the expulsion penalty on Morales after the councilor did not offer any explanation for his continued absences from SB sessions, despite being given a 15-day grace period to satisfactorily and fully explain his side.
It cited Section 2 of Rule XI of the SB internal rules, which states that an absentee councilor who has incurred four consecutive absences without any official leave faces either a six-month suspension or expulsion.
The expulsion resolution was unanimously approved by the SB based on a motion by Councilor Adonis L. Balagtas, which was seconded by Councilor Polito S. Pamintuan.
The council has urged Morales to come out in the open and shed light on his alleged involvement in the attempt on Salonga’s life, but the SB got no response from him.
Records showed Morales was absent during SB regular sessions on Sept. 4, Aug. 29, 22, 14 and 7, and July 31, 24, 17, 10 and 3.
“As councilors, it is expected that each SB member will attend the sessions to draft resolutions and propose laws that will help improve our municipality,” the expulsion resolution read. “Councilor Morales’ continuous absence from July 3, 2017 up to the present without leave can be likened to an abandonment of his position.”
“SB members have observed that Morales has failed to attend three consecutive council sessions only to attend the fourth regular session. Kagawad Morales’ name has also been linked to the failed assassination attempt on Mayor Salonga last July 31 as its supposed mastermind,” the resolution added.
The SB’s resolution against Morales will be forwarded to the Gapan City Regional Trial Court for proper disposition.