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[av_heading heading=’Capiz BMs in near fistfight ‘ tag=’h3′ style=’blockquote modern-quote’ size=” subheading_active=’subheading_below’ subheading_size=’15’ padding=’10’ color=” custom_font=”]
BY JOHN HEREDIA
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ROXAS City – A Provincial Board member of Capiz challenged a colleague into a fistfight during a session on Wednesday.
Eleoper Martinez blew his top while Jonathan Besa was delivering a privileged speech criticizing the rejection of his proposed ordinance seeking an eight-year moratorium on large-scale mining in the province.
But no fistfight happened as their colleagues managed to pacify them.
In May the Provincial Board passed Provincial Ordinance (PO) No. 9 series of 2016, which lifted the 50-year mining ban.
The Board scrapped Besa’s proposal during a session on Oct. 26.
On Tuesday Besa said, addressing presiding officer Vice Gov. Esteban Evan Contreras, “For this reason, we, Board members Victor Tanco Jr., Elmer Arevalo and I, based on the interpretation of our colleague here (Martinez) as a lawyer, we ensured that our proposed bill [on an] eight-year mining ban was sufficient in form and in substance.”
“We have even included Santa Claus in our clauses,” he quipped at the session around 2:30 p.m. “But again, unfortunately, it was declared unconstitutional by this body.”
That was when Martinez took off his barong, approached Besa at the podium and challenged him to fistfight.
On Oct. 12 Martinez, a supporter of PO No. 9, delivered a privileged speech, part of which said, “… a 25-year moratorium can be considered a limited period and is still in the nature of regulation … (but) Ordinance No. 6 series of 1999, [which made] it 50 years, is already confiscatory, tantamount to total prohibition … It is onerous.”
Contreras declared a five-minute recess to pacify Martinez, but the latter again confronted Besa — who was already extending his hands, as if initiating conciliation — when the session resumed.
After a while Besa got irked and took off his coat, accepting Martinez’s challenge.
But their colleagues got between them, and Contreras immediately adjourned the session. All Board members left the session hall at 3:30 p.m./PN
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