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[av_heading heading=’‘AM I BEING DISRESPECTFUL?’ Gamboa denies violating SP rules ‘ tag=’h3′ style=’blockquote modern-quote’ size=’30’ subheading_active=’subheading_below’ subheading_size=’15’ padding=’10’ color=” custom_font=” av-medium-font-size-title=” av-small-font-size-title=” av-mini-font-size-title=” av-medium-font-size=” av-small-font-size=” av-mini-font-size=” admin_preview_bg=”]
BY MAE SINGUAY
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BACOLOD City – After receiving criticisms from his city council colleagues for conducting a public hearing on a House bill, Councilor Wilson Gamboa asked, “Am I being disrespectful?”
Gamboa fielded this rhetorical question in response to the statement that councilors Caesar Distrito, Em Ang, Cindy Rojas, and Dindo Ramos made last week, calling him “disrespectful” for violating the internal rules of the Sangguniang Panlungsod (SP).
According to the four councilors, Gamboa failed to seek authority from the SP to hold the public hearing on House Bill No. 5875, which declares June 18 of every year as the Bacolod City Charter Day and making it a holiday in the city.
“How can I be disrespectful when I sent official notices to all concerned, including all councilors of the committee hearing dated Oct. 27, 2017, before the conduct of the public hearing on Nov. 9, 2017? Why did they complain only after the public hearing was conducted?” Gamboa said in his statement yesterday.
The history, culture and arts committee chairman also said he did not violate Section 1 Rule VI of the SP’s internal rules because “I did not make any reference to previously docketed correspondences, letters, resolutions, ordinances, or privilege speeches.”
He stressed that the Nov. 9 public hearing was “entirely a committee initiative” that is not prohibited by the SP’s internal rules or any existing law.
Gamboa also slammed Distrito by pointing out that the latter “assigned to his committee the correspondence regarding real property tax exemption on memorial parks when it should have been assigned to the committee on ways and means.”
Moreover, Gamboa said he wrote to National Integrated Bar of the Philippines (IBP) president Atty. Abdiel Dan Elijah Fajardo, National Historical Commission of the Philippines chairman Dr. Rene Escalante and IBP local chapter members to clarify the “transitory and effectivity provisions” of Commonwealth Act No. 326.
He said this will be “useful” to House Bill No. 5875.
“I will come up with a well-researched, comprehensive and enlightening position then submit such report to the SP and Congress, which is basically my intention,” Gamboa added./PN
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