Antique SP Secretariat under fire

The secretariat of the Sangguniang Panlalawigan of the province of Antique is under fire for not furnishing the office of the Governor, copies of legislative acts notably resolutions, which are of general application.

Cited as the basis for what most observers believe is “legislative absurdity” is the position of OIC Provincial Secretary Mr. Jimmy Elizalde, that not all resolutions should be signed by the Provincial Governor. This according to him was a DILG opinion issued by then Secretary Joey Lina.

As a result, the Governor's office has not received nor was it furnished copies of the purported resolutions for a period of over a year.

This bizarre bureaucratic lapse is unprecedented according to some quarters, and is likely to affect the official stand of the provincial government in some matters of local concern.

Capitol employees believe that granting for argument's sake that the Governor need not sign all approved SP resolutions, there is no rational nor logical reason to justify the non-furnishing of the copies of the same to the Governor's office, for purposes of reference and guidance.

Speculations are rife that because of the seemingly surreptitious and insidious circumstances surrounding the so called “legislative absurdity” as has been now described by many observers, the Governor's office is preparing a move to straighten out this “mess” caused by the Secretariat by resorting to legal measures which in all likelihood will end up in court if corrective measures cannot be put in place.

Likewise, the Vice Governor Rhodora Cadiao is being scored because the SP Secretariat is under her responsibility being the presiding chair of the Provincial Board. (Manny Barcelona)