Obsessed

The work performance of Vice Governor Rolex T. Suplico during the last 14 months as the number two elected official of the province can be summed briefly: endlessly undermining the administration of Governor Niel D. Tupas, Sr. and seeking to chop the head of provincial administrator Manuel “Boy” Mejorada by every means possible.

Indeed, Suplico cannot point to any instance in which he harnessed the energies and talents of the Sangguniang Panlalawigan to address the province’s gnawing problems such as poverty, inadequate public health capability, malnutrition, poor infrastructure, and lack of livelihood opportunities for the people.

Most of the time, he has been plotting and devising ways to block the programs and projects of the Tupas administration, afraid as he is that the success of his uncle would make it more difficult for his political group to wrest control of the Capitol in the 2010 elections.

As a result, the Sangguniang Panlalawigan has been reduced to a wrecking machine that made sure no worthy program or project of the Tupas administration is given much-needed funding. The Sanggunian also became an instrument for harassing and intimidating provincial officials to shake up their morale and render them ineffective in the performance of their work.

After more than a year, the Sanggunian under Suplico has little to show in terms of legislative output that could help the provincial government do more in the delivery of basic services to the people.

This is easy to understand.

The Sanggunian has become a rudderless ship, with the captain — Suplico — so preoccupied with his obsession to exact vengeance on one person he perceives as the biggest obstacle to his mission to destroy the Tupas administration. That person is ME. He has forgotten his basic mandate to lead the Sanggunian into pursuing a legislative agenda in support of the over-all programs and projects of the provincial government.

Suplico is obsessed with the destruction of Manuel “Boy” Mejorada.

Just last Tuesday (Aug. 5, 2008), Suplico has filed two criminal cases against me before the City Prosecutor’s Office. His charges: usurpation of public functions and falsification of public documents.

Without meaning to pre-empt the preliminary investigation to be conducted by the City Prosecutor’s Office, the charges are baseless. His only intention is to harass me and intimidate me with this legal action. As with the malversation cases he filed against job hires, I can say with certainty that the complaints will be dismissed.

Suplico has already wasted a whole year with his campaign of destruction. He will not stop until I am removed as provincial administrator. He will not succeed. My only regret is that it is the entire province of Iloilo that will suffer the consequences. it is most likely the next two years will be a repeat of the past one year.