CEBU City Mayor Michael Rama and other local officials on Wednesday reiterated their call for Interior Secretary Mel Senen Sarmiento to resign following Malacañang’s alleged order to reverse a decision of a DILG hearing officer dismissing his case over his alleged anomalous release of calamity funds.
But Sarmiento said politics had nothing to do with the decision of the DILG to suspend him, citing his sworn duty to implement a lawful order “regardless of political and personal affiliations.”
Rama had ordered the closure of the Cebu City Hall’s side doors for “security reasons,” saying his opponents were desperate to run City Hall.
He said Malacañang and the DILG were out to get him because they chose to overlook a recommendation by a hearing officer of the Interior Department, Isidro Barrios III, to drop the case against him and his co-accused.
Rama said he no longer trusted Sarmiento, a family friend.
“I don’t believe in Mel Sarmiento. He doesn’t deserve to be there. He should step down, resign,” Rama told Cebu-based reporters.
“An officer who did the investigation did an exhaustive presentation but was ignored by them. Upon whose investigation are they basing their decision?” he said.
Rama said he read a memorandum signed by Barrios and addressed to Sarmiento in December 2015 that found him and his Vice Mayor, Edgardo Labella, and the 12 councilors “not culpable” of the complaint filed by lawyer Reymelio Delute, a known ally of the Bando Osmeña-Pundok Kauswagan, a local party led by Rama’s political opponent and challenger in the Cebu mayoral race on May 9, Tomas Osmeña.
He also questioned the DILG’s decision to disregard Barrios’ alleged recommendation when the latter came all the way to Cebu just to conduct exhaustive marathon hearings.
Sarmiento said, however, that if there was one person who would resist any attempt to distort the legal process to pin down Rama, that would be him because the Rama family had been a very close “family friend” since the 70’s.
Sarmiento, who hails from neighboring Samar, said that, as DILG secretary, he had a sworn duty to implement a lawful order regardless of political and personal affiliations.
After replacing Liberal Party standard bearer Manuel Roxas II in September last year, Sarmiento said, that he adopted a hands-off policy on matters involving elective officials.
He said the DILG’s Legal Department had been given a free hand and blanket authority to investigate complaints filed against local government officials.
He claimed he only learned about Rama’s case when the Legal Department submitted its decision in relation to the complaint filed against him and other Cebu City officials by Labangon barangay captain Vic Buendia. The department recommended the suspension of Rama and the members of the city council.