MAYOR’S GAMBLING ‘CAUGHT IN THE ACT’
Grave misconduct, conduct unbecoming a public official, among complaints Mayor Tomas Osmeña is facing before anti-graft office The mayor, for his part, says dozens of cases have been filed against him but he has never been convicted
A PRIVATE citizen has filed a complaint against Cebu City Mayor Tomas Osmeña for grave misconduct, conduct unbecoming of a public official and neglect of duty after he caught the mayor playing poker inside an illegal gambling place earlier in the year.
Complainant Conrado Romano said he chanced upon the mayor gambling at the House of Jacks inside Ralph’s Wines and Spirits in Barangay Kamputhaw on three occasions last January.
The mayor, for his part, was unfazed by the complaint.
“I will answer all... that’s normal. They always come up with things. I’m going to die, I’m like this, I’m like that. I’ve never been convicted by the Ombudsman. Never,” Osmeña said.
“They have filed a dozen of cases against me and I’ll let my lawyers take care of that,” he added.
The poker house was raided by members of the City Mobile Force Company last Jan. 30 after the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. complained that it was operating without a license.
During the operation, 19 persons were arrested, including the establishment’s assistant manager, Precy Impas.
Cebu City Police Office (CCPO) Director Royina Garma had received information that some of the poker players were high-ranking city officials.
Garma’s evidence
“Yes, we were told that public officials, elected officials and also government employees were frequent guests. I really wanted to validate the information but when we conducted the operation, we were not able to get a copy of the CCTV (closed-circuit television) because there was no recording,” the police official said last Feb. 1.
Garma was able to secure a footage of one city official entering the place, but the CCPO didn’t have evidence that he gambled inside.
As for the complainant, he showed photos of the mayor accompanied by his son Miguel and a security officer from the City Hall inside the establishment.
“The photographs I took while Mayor Tomas Osmeña was playing was done in the first week of January where I was invited by a friend to accompany him to the place and to my surprise, I saw the father of the city who was gambling, which I believe (is) a violation under the ethical standard of government official and other laws prohibiting elected officials from engaging in gambling,” Romano said in his letter to the anti-graft office.
The Department of the Interior and Local Government Memorandum Circular (MC) 2017-20 enjoins all local government officials and employees to strictly observe and comply with prohibitions against entering, staying and/or playing at gambling casinos.
“No political motivation”
In an interview with Superbalita Cebu, Romano said he could no longer remember exact dates he caught the mayor playing poker. He admitted that he used to frequent the poker house to gamble.
On one occasion, he said he and his friends were turned away because VIPs (Very Important Persons) were inside. He said he was surprised when he caught sight of the mayor playing poker in one of the rooms.
On another occasion, he said he was asked to leave because the establishment was expecting VIPs (Very Important Persons).
“I was standing by the cashier when the VIP arrived and it turned out to be the mayor. That was why we couldn’t play because the mayor was going to play,” Romano said in Cebuano.
Romano said he took the photos using his cellphone. He kept the pictures until he decided to file a complaint against Osmeña before the Ombudsman.
Romano said he is a resident of Urgello St. in Barangay Sambag 1 and that he is a businessman engaged in buy and sell. He denied his motive for filing the complaint was political.
Meanwhile, the “Pulihi Na, Cebu!” movement lauded Romano for his actions.
In a press statement, the group said this was not the first time Osmeña was involved in illegal activities. Last month, the mayor was tagged as the “protector” of the illegal butane business in the city, it said.
According to the group, snapshots of the mayor gambling inside an illegal poker house only make their movement stronger because the photos prove that Cebu City deserves better.
“Is this the image of a good public official? So, is this where our taxes go?” the group said.
In November 2016, President Rodrigo Duterte issued MC 06 prohibiting public officials against entering gambling casinos. /