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BY GLENDA SOLOGASTOA
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Wednesday, March 15, 2017
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ILOILO City – President Rodrigo Duterte may be up to something by repeatedly linking Mayor Jed Patrick Mabilog to illegal drugs, according to Councilor Joshua Alim.
“I can sense something, a link but I cannot mention it here,” said Alim yesterday.
On Monday night during a press briefing, the President again linked Mayor Jed Patrick Mabilog to illegal drugs – the fourth time in seven months since August last year.
“Makaobra ko sang link nga-a s’ya gid ang paborito. Bal-an niyo naman seguro. I will not name names. But we have to do something,” said Alim.
The councilor said he wasn’t sure if the President’s pronouncements had something to do with politics.
“I don’t know…basta hambal namon pagtipon namon sa Manila, si Mayor Jed nagaobra sang tanan but he is always a collateral damage of everything because may tuyo gid ya ang President nga kon sin-o,” said Alim.
The third time the President linked Mabilog to illegal drugs was last month, on Feb. 24, during a speech in Davao City.
The President said, “Naay mayor ug mga syudad. Ang usa diha ig-agaw ni Drilon, si Mayor Mabilog sa Iloilo City, ug daghan pa (The list also contains names of city mayors. One of them is the cousin of Drilon, Mayor Mabilog of Iloilo City, and many others),” the President said.
Mabilog is a second cousin of Sen. Franklin Drilon.
INFORM THE PRESIDENT
Councilor Eduardo Peñaredondo, majority floor leader in the Sangguniang Panlungsod, suggested to colleagues that they inform the President about the city government’s programs and projects supportive of the national government’s antidrug campaign.
During the city council’s regular session yesterday, he said Duterte may be clueless on what the city government is doing to address the illegal drugs problem.
The President should be furnished with, among others, city ordinances, SP resolutions, city government memorandums of agreement, programs and projects related to the campaign against drug trafficking, said Peñaredondo.
Though a critic of Mabilog, Alim agreed with Peñaredondo.
“Kay daw ginahanot pirmi ang mayor kag ang syudad ta. Despite the fact that the mayor is exerting everything nga ma-recognize s’ya nga he is doing something for the city against illegal drugs, daw kabudlay gid. Pareho kagab-i ginsulit naman s’ya. Sa kadamo nga mayors nga involved, ang aton mayor gid ya,” said Alim.
Peñaredondo believed the city government’s – and Mabilog’s – efforts against illegal drugs have not reached the President’s attention.
The Office of the President must know that “our city government is strongly helping the government, especially the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) and the Philippine National Police (PNP),” he stressed.
During a speech in Aug. 7 last year when he first tagged Mabilog an illegal drugs coddler, the President described Iloilo as the “most shabu-lized” in the country.
“Iloilo grabe talaga,” said Duterte.
The second time Duterte linked Mabilog to illegal drugs was on Jan. 11 during his meeting with the country’s mayors in Malacañang.
“Let us furnish the President para mabal-an ya nga gaobra ta di,” said Alim.
PRESSURED?
The city councilor observed that the PNP and PDEA in Western Visayas appeared not interested in acknowledging the efforts of the city government in the campaign against illegal drugs.
“Nahadlok sila mag-intra. Basi sila mabuyayawan sang Presidente…Nahadlukan sila maghambal. Kon ano ang mga gina obra ni Mayor Jed kalab-ot bala sa Malacañang? Kay (PNP director) General (Roland) Bato (Dela Rosa)? No, wala,” Alim explained.
He also said that during the recent visit to Iloilo City of Interior and Local Government secretary Ismael Sueno, police and PDEA officials appeared “pressured.”
“I have noticed that pressure. When Secretary Sueno was here, daw gadistansya sila kay Mayor Jed,” said Alim.
The city government under Mabilog has been supportive of the police and PDEA financially and logistically, stressed Peñaredondo.
“They were provided motorcycles and vehicles for greater mobility. Facilities like detention cells, among others, were constructed through the efforts of the city,” he added.
Peñaredondo also said the city government has a drug rehabilitation program and has linked up with the Western Visayas Medical Center and West Visayas State University Medical Center for drug rehabilitation.
Despite the President’s allegation, no drug charges have been filed against Mabilog.
But with the President as main accuser, Alim said, Mabilog has a tough time clearing his name.
“I don’t believe on hearsay. I am a lawyer. I don’t say man nga clean man sia kay not all the time updanay kami. It is up to him to do something to clean his name. But for the meantime, we notice he is doing everything to clear his name,” said Alim./PN
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