Just as all of Tagbilaran thought that the son also rises along with his father in the hollowed halls of the Sangguniang Panglungsud when fate intervened in the form of a judgment call on the part of City Mayor Dan Neri lim. In the aftermath, the son became the latest casualty in the ongoing feud between businessman Mario Uy and City Councilor Edgar Kapirig as the two are locking legal horns in a P10 million slander case. But Mayor Lim has the last say and Uy appeared to have the last laugh.
The collateral damage of the Uy-Kapirig tiff was the bid of the city councilor's son, Michael Angelo, who everybody thought early on as the mayor's choice for the city Sangguniang Kabataan presidency. But for the mayor who is no stranger to controversies, it was his way of showing to the world that he who has the clout makes the rules in city politics. It was like saying whoever the mayor wants, he gets. Even of course if it means breaking old bonds of friendship nurtured over time. It was also a message the enemies of the mayor should know that in another coming contest, the mayor's choice should also prevail. The coming fight for the city presidency of the Association of Barangat Captains is no different when two contending parties are slugging it out for supremacy. The ABC tiff is between Taloto barangay captain Faro Cabalit and barangay captain Glorivic de la Serna. Cabalit is Lim's favorite bet while de la Serna is said to be back up by the forces identified with former city mayor Jose Torralba. If the ABC elections were held today, it was clear that the Lim-backed candidate has the upper hand ,what with the vaunted resources of city hall thrown in his favor.
PICKING UP THE PIECES
Picking up the pieces from what was left of his son's shattered SK dream, Mrs. Gertrudes “Neneng” Kapirig, the mother, lamented the unfortunate the situation where her son was made to bear the brunt of his husband's conflict with the businessman. She felt cheated about the fact her son was made to believe that he was the choice of Mayor Lim only to find out in the end that he was only made to play second fiddle. Since winning the SK presidency in Poblacion III, the young Kapirig was the shoo-in for the city SK presidency with no less than Mayor Lim acknowledging his role as political godfather. Things turned sour when the elder Kapirig was caught in a bitter fight with Uy in a slander case filed by the later before the Poblacion barangay court. It appeared that no mediation is in sight after the two parties remained unyielding in their respective position when the case was subjected to mediation proceedings last Monday. In an interview late yesterday, Mayor Lim confirmed that he has a hand in having the young Kapirig withdrew his SK bid in favor of Am-am Alturas , SK chair of barangay Dampas. He said that the change in the SK choice in this city has some bearing with the Kapirig-Uy dispute given the intensity of the issue now fast becoming a public property.
But the city mayor countered that whatever connection it has, it is more incidental rather than deliberate considering his first love for the city's program Botika sa Katawhan of which incidentally is Lim”s best friend's brainchild who happens to be Uy. Lim even appointed him as deputy mayor, a title he swaggers around like a badge of honor. There were reports that the group of V-Mayor Jose Antonio Veloso, Lim's arch enemy, tried to exploit the explosive situation by winning the side of the broken hearted Kapirig only to be politely rejected. The young Kapirig remained loyal to his principle to be with his father's side who sticks to Mayor Lim's group despite what happened to his own bid as SK president that never was. But despite what happened to Kapirig's SK aspiration , he was consoled with the thought that one of the conditions forged by Mayor Lim is for Alturas to resign as SK president in the event that the Uy-Kapirig case will be settled amicably. That done, Alturas' resignation will pave the way for the young Kapirig's assumption to office as the city SK president. Like an elected city councilor, an SK member becomes an automatic ex oficio member of the city law making body with all the perks and privileges due a member of the Sangguniang Panglungsud.
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