Garcia, DILG-7 chief sued over Rama’s removal from office

Local

LEGAL challenges are escalating against Cebu City Mayor Raymond Alvin Garcia and Department of the Interior and Local Government-Central Visayas (DILG-) Director Leocadio Trovela as new complaints accusing both officials of misconduct, dishonesty, and falsifying public documents have been filed against them.

These complaints stemmed from Garcia’s controversial swearing-in as mayor in October 2024, which critics, led by Atty. Mikel F. Rama, argued lacked legal grounds.

Rama, an aspiring city councilor and son of former mayor Michael Rama, who was dismissed from office by the Ombudsman, filed the charges against Garcia and Trovela.

On December 6, Mikel filed a 13-page complaint with the Office of the Ombudsman-Visayas, accusing Garcia of grave misconduct, dishonesty, fraud, abandonment of office, and falsification of documents.

Mikel’s complaint centers on Garcia’s continued assumption of the mayor’s office without legal justification, despite the lack of an official order from the Ombudsman.

Mikel claims that Garcia’s October 9 oath-taking was baseless, and his actions misrepresented him as the rightful mayor, causing confusion among government agencies and the public.

The complaint alleges that Garcia "fraudulently assumed" the mayoral role and misled the public by creating a false impression that the mayoral position was vacant, facilitating his unlawful assumption of office.

Mikel also accuses Garcia of neglecting his duties as vice mayor, which led to the appointment of First Councilor Donaldo Hontiveros as acting vice mayor.

In addition, Mikel filed a separate 11-page complaint against Trovela, accusing him of grave misconduct, dishonesty, and falsifying public documents.

He claims that Trovela facilitated Garcia’s swearing-in by issuing a memorandum on October 5, instructing Garcia to assume the mayor’s office following the alleged permanent vacancy of the position.

However, Mikel argues that the Ombudsman had never issued any directive for the DILG to enforce his father’s dismissal.

Mikel contends that Trovela’s actions amounted to falsification, as the DILG had no legal authority to declare the mayor’s position vacant without an official order from the Ombudsman.

This, Mikel claims, misled the public into believing Garcia’s oath-taking was legitimate.

The controversy deepened when the DILG clarified on November 14 that the Ombudsman had not issued a directive for implementing its dismissal decision.

The DILG said that it could only act on Ombudsman decisions when an official order is issued, and the September 9, decision did not include such an order, raising questions about Trovela’s actions.

The legal complaints add to the growing political tensions in Cebu City, where Garcia’s assumption of the mayoralty has been contentious since his predecessor, Michael Rama, was dismissed over charges of nepotism.

Garcia, in response to the allegations, dismissed the accusations as politically motivated, particularly with the 2025 elections approaching. He characterized the complaints as typical tactics to discredit his leadership and distract from his political opponents.(MyTVCebu)