Barangay Chairman Samuel Rivera of Langgam, San Pedro City went to the office of the Ombudsman in Quezon City on Monday, July 15, to file charges against San Pedro City Mayor Art Joseph Mercado of Laguna province.
This, for abuse of authority, grave abuse of authority, oppression, and violation of the anti-graft and corrupt practices act.
Also named in the complaint are Vice Mayor Divina Olivarez, 11 councilors, and other city officials.
This stemmed from Rivera’s preventive suspension before the scheduled election of the Liga ng mga Barangay last week, allegedly without due case.
“We filed cases against Mayor Mercado and others for grave abuse of authority after they slapped us with their questionable preventive suspension signed by his city administrator without due cause,” Rivera said. “It’s very oppressive and unconstitutional that’s why we filed these cases to the Ombudsman.”
“The requisites to implement preventive suspension on these kinds of cases were not present for it to be carried out.”
The Liga ng mga Barangay election supposedly set July 5, was postponed by Liga ng mga Barangay sa Pilipinas on July 4, after Brgy Chairman Rivera’s suspension.
Rivera was not the only barangay chairman slapped with preventive suspension.
Brgy San Antonio Chairman Eugenio S. Ynion Jr., and Brgy Chrysanthemum chairman Restituto Hernandez were both slapped with the same.
“They immediately suspended us inappropriately to rush things because they don’t want us to vote in the Liga ng mga Barangay here in San Pedro where we have the numbers,” Rivera added.
“It’s going to be a dangerous precedent if we don’t do something.”
Rivera is among the 14, out of 27 barangay executives, considered allies of Ynion Jr., who is the presidential candidate for the Association of Barangay Chairmen (ABC) in San Pedro City.
