Two factions fighting for control in promoting the gubernatorial ambition of actor-director Cesar Montano engaged in a shouting match resulting in a near gunfight late yesterday at the JJ's Seafood Village along K of C Drive , this city. On one hand to stake his claim as his “brother's keeper” was Rommel Montano, younger sibling of the actor. He reportedly drew his licensed 45 cal. pistol to ward off any provocation from another supporter of the Baclayon native identified as businessman Donald Sevilla. The confrontation broke into the open after the armed bodyguards of former mayor Doloriech Dumaluan came into the picture to back up Sevilla in his verbal skirmish with the young Montano.
According to the younger Montano, he was provoked into drawing his firearm after he was allegedly berated by Sevilla in front of several Montano supporters. As far as the two factions were concerned, it was one accident waiting to happen. Reports said that the Sevilla-Dumaluan faction was reportedly irked of Rommel's over protective stance of his elder brother. He said what must have triggered Sevilla's outrage to him was the alleged disapproval of their group's requests in promoting Montano's candidacy. Rommel said as a close aide of his brother, he found it prudent not to approve all requests by the Dumaluan-Sevilla group in the interest of his brother's welfare.
The same group, according to Rommel, was at odds with another Montano ally Ariel Lim. As Montano's campaign manager, Lim was also the object of the group's derision when it can't have its way with the actor, at times.
Lim was “loaned” to Montano by former Ilocus Sur governor Luis “Chavit” Singson. Montano and Singson were party mates as senatorial bets in the administration juggernaut during the 2007 elections. Both suffered defeat. Yesterday's incident happened after presidential candidate Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III sworn in the gubernatorial aspirant as a new member of the Liberal Party at the JJ's Seafood Village . With Montano into the fold of the Liberal Party, the actor becomes the party's standard bearer for governor in Bohol . With the two warring groups appeared ready to rumble with their drawn guns, cooler heads led by the actor himself stood in the middle to pacify his quarreling supporters. It was gathered that to cool off the situation from breaking into an armed confrontation, the actor-politician brought his younger sibling to Cebu early last night.
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The shouting match and near firefight yesterday afternoon capped another sorry spectacle that engulfed supporters of Noynoy Aquino and Montano in Bohol. Earlier, there were apprehensions of an expected tug-of-war over who should be in charge of the campaign of front-running presidential candidate Aquino. The conflict of two other groups escalated into the open during the senator's first visit in Bohol since he declared his candidacy. Prime-movers of the Movement of Volunteers to Elect Noynoy for President (Move Noynoy) were flabbergasted when they were virtually relegated to the sidelines last Thursday. Lawyer Antonio Amora Jr., former provincial administrator of Gov. Erico Aumentado, who now prides himself as the Liberal Party contact in Bohol , was fingered as the culprit in trying to upstage the Move Noynoy originals. Amora, who came into the picture when Move Noynoy was already off the ground, reportedly disregarded vehicle arrangements for the visit and instead took over the show. Instead of being a people's campaign envisioned by the Move Noynoy core, it was Amora along with political hangers-on who stole the show in Thursday's affair. Engr. Vicente Loquellano, Move Noynoy prime mover, declined to issue any statement on the emerging conflict but confirmed that his group will hold an emergency meeting to distance itself from the LP. Among the political figures who flanked Aquino during the visit were former Con-Con delegate Natalio “Chito” Castillo and ex-Panglao mayor Dumaluan. Castillo and Dumaluan had been affiliated with the PDP Laban although Castillo had also previously been identified with ex-Pres. Erap Estrada.
During his speech at the forum hosted by Move Noynoy, Aquino made no mention of either the prime movers or the movement itself that was the first to declare support for his candidacy in Bohol. Another Move Noynoy convenor admitted that he has not been attending the recent meetings when Amora started to throw his weight around. “I have nothing against him. But since the start, we made it clear that this was a people's campaign. Since he now claims he is working for LP, he should get out of Move Noynoy because he is politicizing it,” the convenor declared. Also sighted among the Aquino crowd in Bohol were City Councilor Zenaido Rama and businessman Donald Sevilla. A Move Noynoy convenor said Thursday's affair was nearly aborted when Aquino's Manila office asked for a postponement to wait for newly-inducted LP member Cesar Montano. The local convenors however refused saying that the preparations were already in place. “We also have nothing to do with Montano because he was not part of the group in the first place,” a source privy to the exchange revealed. It was only when the group threatened to quit the Aquino campaign when the Manila office came up with a compromise. The Thursday affair pushed through with the NGO group taking charge while the LP led by Montano would host Saturday's political event. The compromise seemed like a good idea until the LP took over the show just the same last Thursday.
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