The elections for new officers of the Liga ng mga Barangay , Bohol chapter, yesterday at the Bohol La Roca Hotel, went ahead despite a court order sought to stop the proceedings. Taloto Barangay Captain Faro Cabalit who is the city Liga president made a last ditch rally to stop the elections only to be turned down by the election organizers led by outgoing Liga president Concepcion Lim. The lady Liga president resigned from her post yesterday after winning the position of vice governor during the May 10 elections. Cabalit who was groomed to oppose the candidate backed by the Liga majority walked out from the elections after realizing the futility of his bid to stop the balloting. He never came back after the last vote was counted with his opponent topping the polls with 38 votes. The city Liga head only managed to poll four votes.
The choice of the Liga majority, Crispina Vergara, Liga president of Mabini town, was backed up by 38 federation presidents who rallied by her side making her the runaway winner. Vergara is a first degree cousin of Mabini Mayor Stephen Rances who was elected vice mayor in the last polls after completing his term as mayor. With the court action sought by Cabalit, the question now hanging over the head of the new Liga president was that can she sit legally as ex-officio member of the Sangguniang Panlalawigan of Bohol? This surfaced following Cabalit's question of the conduct of the special election of the vacant presidential and vice-presidential positions of the Liga. He said he had secure a court order for a temporary restraining order (TRO) issued and signed by acting Executive Judge Suceso A. Arcamo of Regional Trial Court of Bohol Branch 47.
Judge Arcamo said the TRO was effective for 72 hours, “restraining the Liga--Bohol thru its president Hon. Concepcion O. Lim and all persons acting in her behalf from holding the special election on June 19, 2010.” “The court finds time of the essence and indeed there is an extreme urgency to issue a seventy-two hours TRO.” But it was learned that a Liga committee composed of Liga presidents Romeo Labor, Rolando Ibale and Elenito Llorente, outrightly rejected the court order presented by Cabalit during the assembly yesterday prior to the election because the court order was not addressed to them.
The court order docketed as Civil Case No. 7774 directed the Liga--Bohol chapter represented by past president Concepcion Lim. Lim said she has already resigned as Liga president in the morning of June 18, 2010 but the court order was reportedly served in the afternoon of the same day. The special election went on undisturbed with federated president Crispina was elected winning the vote. Vergara, said to be a protégé of Lim got a total of 38 votes as against only four votes for her lone opponent Taloto barangay captain Cabalit. Her running-mate Antequera's federated president Maxelinda Ayco was also elected as provincial federated vicepresident, garnering a total of 32 while her rival Panglao federated president Cerino Hormachuelos got nine votes. Immediately after their proclamation, both Vergara and Ayco took their oaths before Regional Director Pedro Noval of the Dept. of Interior and Local Government (DILG). ELECTIONS IRREGULAR?
Cabalit said in an interview that the said election was irregular and violated the prescribed reglamentary period within which the said special election should be held based on the Election Code of the association. He said the conduct did not observe the 15-day period upon which notices of such holding of special election shall be forwarded to all qualified members, in this case to 48 members, including this city. He said he only received the notice for the conduct of such election in less than a week's time. After the rejection of the order, Cabalit skipped the election upon the advice of his counsel but his name was still included in the candidates for Liga president. He said he should not have attended the election proceedings because in the first place it was “illegal” though his candidacy was for president was considered. He was voted upon in absentia, however. Under section 1 Article XI of the Constitution and By-Laws of the LnB, the incumbent national Liga executive board “is authorized to order the holding of such elections for the Liga chapter concerned.” Thus, the 4 th Liga executive board has passed Resolution No. 04-SPE-10-51- s. 2010, effecting such special election.
The national Liga board authorization of the special election is based on Section 2, Article XII of the same constitution and By-Laws that provides that in the event of vacancy due to “voluntary resignation” (in the case of Lim) the vice-president in the case of provincial Liga “shall assume the office for the unexpired term. “In the case of a vacancy in the office of the executive vice-president and/or vice-president in the national Liga, the same shall be filled through an election among the bonafide and chapter members.” The conduct of said special election was witnessed by the DILG regional director, Comelec Provincial Supervisor lawyer Eliseo Labaria and Provincial Secretary BOniafcio Quirog of the Sangguniang Panlalawigan. ( With reports of Sen Guingguing and Ric Obedencio)
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