RAPS VS. ILIGAN MAYOR. Norbel Romarez, an employee of the Iligan City government, shows to reporters a copy of the complaint he filed against Mayor Celso Regencia before the Office of the Ombudsman in Cagayan de Oro City on Monday, Feb. 24. The employee accused Regencia of physically assaulting him. (PNA photo by Jigger J. Jerusalem)
CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY -- Iligan City Mayor Celso Regencia has denied allegations that he physically assaulted a City Hall employee, claiming he only "pinched" the complainant for a work-related mistake.
Speaking for Regencia, Iligan City information officer Jose Pantoja said Tuesday the mayor sees the complaint of job-order employee Norbel Romarez as “politically motivated” and alleged that the complainant is backed by political opponents.
Pantoja did not elaborate.
Romarez, 59, accused Regencia of kidnapping, physical injuries, grave threat, grave coercion, and violation of the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act in a complaint filed before the Ombudsman on Monday.
Romarez, who has has been working at the city's Central Material Recovery and Composting Facility (CMRF) since 2014, alleged Regencia punched his abdomen and smacked his ears on Feb. 14, 2020.
He also alleged that Regencia taped his mouth and ordered him to get inside a large carton box.
He said the mayor was livid following reports that he deliberately diverted the waste dump's liquid discharge to the Dodiongan Falls, a local tourist site.
Romarez defended his actions, saying there were times that “the pond could no longer take in the volume of the leachate such that it will overflow if not diverted. In order to prevent overflowing, we used PVC, (polyvinyl chloride) pipes to catch the leachate before it reaches the pond and diverts it to the canal.”
“As a consequence, the nearby waterfalls (Dodiongan Waterfalls) situated below the CMRF was affected and the water would turn brown and black sometimes,” Romarez said.
Pantoja admitted that out of rage, Regencia "pinched" Romarez but denied manhandling the employee.
He said it was Romarez's right to file charges case against Regencia, who also filed a countercharge against Romarez for "environmental sabotage".
Pantoja said the mayor also wants Romarez to pay for the PHP200,000 penalty imposed by the Environmental Management Bureau for the diversion of the waste dump's effluent into the falls.
“The city government of Iligan must not pay the PHP200,000 penalty. The people of Iligan must not suffer because of [Romarez’s] actions,” Pantoja said.
He said the city government has already closed the pipeline used to divert the leachate to the Dodiongan waterfalls. (PNA)
