DAGUPAN CITY, (PNA) — A local legislative body can act on a complaint filed by a citizen even if the same is not in the form of a verified complaint, a city councilor here said on Monday.
Councilor Jose Netu Tamayo, head of the Blue Ribbon Committee of the Sangguniang Panlungsod (SP) and also a lawyer, stressed this when the body started its inquiry in aid of legislation to find out if City Agriculture Officer Emma Molina did anything to stop the proliferation of illegal fish pens during the past city administration.
The inquiry stemmed from the open letter of Ermin Garcia Jr., publisher of the newspaper The Sunday Punch, listing down nine issues, among them the proliferation of illegal fish pens during the past administration of Mayor Benjamin Lim which reached more than 1,000.
Assistant City Legal Officer Roy Laforteza agreed with Councilor Tamayo, citing that even the city mayor can conduct an investigation even if the complaint from any of his or her constituent is done verbally. However, if the purpose of the inquiry is for the prosecution of the person complained of, a verified complaint is needed as provided for in the Local Government Code.
During the inquiry, Molina admitted that illegal fish pens really proliferated during the past administration but it was not her office that was in charge of going after the operators of illegal fish pens.
She told the committee it was the River Coastal Monitoring Office (RCMO) under the office of the city mayor headed by Butch Gutierrez which was in charge of monitoring the illegal fish pens in the river systems of Dagupan and not the City Agriculture Office (CAO).
The illegal fish pens appeared to have increased in number from April to May 2013 or before the local election.
Molina said when Mayor Belen Fernandez took over the helm of the city in July, she abolished RCMO and created “Task Force Bantay Ilog” which she directly placed under the agriculture office.
The mayor ordered the newly created task force to spearhead the demolition of all illegal fish pens built during the past city administration.
Tamayo said they will conduct another inquiry next week on the still unliquidated cash advances extended to some city officials as chairmen of city fiestas and Bangus Festivals.