Who is Makati mayor? Binay insists on waiting for CA order

MANILA, Philippines – Suspended Makati Mayor Jejomar Erwin Binay Jr remained defiant on Monday, March 16, despite the enforcement of the suspension order against him.

He said his camp will continue to wait for the appellate court’s decision on his motion to stop the enforcement of the Ombudsman’s order preventively suspending him and other city officials for 6 months.

Past 8 am on Monday, the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) served the order, posting the notice outside the barricaded entrance of the city hall.

Just before 10 am, Vice Mayor Romulo Peña was sworn in as acting mayor.

Asked if he would continue discharging his duties as mayor – in defiance of the suspension order – Binay repeated: “We continue to question the suspension order and its legality. Hintayin natin ang resulta ng ginagawa sa CA. (Let us wait for the Court of Appeal’s decision.) 

The suspension order stems from complaints over a P11.97-million Makati contract covering the design and architectural services of a car park building. No public bidding, as required by law, was allegedly conducted.

‘Void from the start’

Speaking to reporters, Binay declined to comment on Peña’s oath-taking, but maintained that he and his camp continue to question the legality of the Ombudsman’s order.

Binay spokesman Joey Salgado however said that Peña’s oath of office stems from an order that Binay’s camp considers “unlawful from the start.”

“Our basis is the suspension order of the Ombudsman. Our position is that it is not valid, it is void from the start,” he said.

Asked if this means they consider Peña’s swearing-in as void, Salgado said, “It follows.”

Binay and his lawyers did not answer directly when asked who should be recognized in official documents as the city’s leader, saying that they preferred to wait for the CA’s ruling.

Asked what the mayor would do if the situation creates confusion among Makati residents, Binay said that it was a problem they did not create.

He blamed the DILG for not waiting for the CA’s decision before enforcing the suspension order.

Salgado added: “Ito ay sitwasyon na hindi kami nag-create. Nagsimula ang ganyang problema sa ginawa ng DILG, dahil sa hindi pagpayag na ang legal process masunod. But we will address it, the mayor will confer with the proper department heads.” (This is a situation we did not create. The problem started with the act of the DILG, because they did not let the legal process take its course.)

Disrupted transactions

In his statement, Binay also hit the DILG for sending some 2,500 police officers who blocked city hall employees from entering the building.

“Around 4 am today, some 2,500 members of the Philippine National Police (PNP), including Special Action Force (SAF), swooped down on Makati city hall and barricaded all entrances, effectively disrupting services of the city government,” Binay said.

But he added that he “sympathized” with the police, who were only being used for political purposes.

“We understand and we sympathize with the members of the PNP and the SAF. Ginagamit sila sa ngalan ng pulitika. Alam naman namin na ang nagplano, nagdesisyon ng kanilang ginagawa ngayon ay walang iba kundi si DILG Secretary Mar Roxas,” Binay added.

(They are being used for political purposes. We know that none other than DILG Secretary Mar Roxas planned and decided everything.)

Binay apologized to the public for the disrupted services at the city hall.

While there has been no official suspension of offices, many city employees were unable to go to work because of the police surrounding the city hall. – Rappler.com