"OUR trip is legal and aboveboard."
This was the joint statement of Vice Mayor El Cid Familiaran and Councilors Caesar Distrito, Cindy Rojas, Em Ang, Dindo Ramos, Renecito Novero and Bartolome Orola, who were on an official trip to Long Beach, California since last week.
The city officials issued the statement Thursday, July 26, after no session was held on Wednesday due to lack of quorum.
Of the 14 councilors, only six were present where Councilor Ricardo Tan was designated by Familiaran as an acting vice mayor and acting presiding officer.
Aside from Tan, also present were Councilors Claudio Puentevella, Wilson Gamboa, Sonya Verdeflor, Ann Marie Palermo and Ayesha Joy Villaflor.
Councilor Elmer Sy filed a sick leave while Councilor Noli Villarosa was on a vacation leave.
On their joint statement, they stated their trip has a valid Travel Authority from the Mayor and the Vice Mayor and was duly approved as an Official Travel by the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG), through Undersecretary Austere Panadero, but others filed their leave of absence with Authority to Travel as required by law.
"Only six councilors out of the 14 went here for a tourism and trade mission, especially the Long Beach Masskara Event. Long Beach City is a sister city of Bacolod City. They have a quorum and under the Local Government Code, the acting vice mayor is equip as to what to do to make sure that there is a session," they said.
They added that their trip is their personal expense and the city spent nothing on it.
"We are only absent for two session days, and we have almost perfect attendance for several years already. They had, in fact, more absences than ours, and they, therefore, no moral ascendancy to question our leave of absences," they said.
"Again, there is enough number of councilors to constitute a quorum except that if one or two of them will also be absent, then it is beyond our control already. Public service had not been jeopardized as the law provides succession and remedy. If they do not know how to perform their duties, it is not our problem anymore," they added.
On Wednesday, Tan, the acting presiding officer, started the 108th regular session at about 3:15 p.m. and adjourned it 30 minutes later as there is no quorum.
He said this is the first time there was no quorum at the City Council, adding that they were not informed of the travel of his colleagues to Long Beach.
Familiaran and the six councilors were invited to attend the events to promote the cultural and educational ties between the two cities.
The Long Beach Bacolod Association is the official organization to develop and deliver cultural, trade and educational activities for the sister cities of Bacolod, Negros and Long Beach, California. (MAP)