Court junks TRO petition on Kalibo budgets implementation

                                                                                                                                                    PHOTO AKLAN FORUM

BY BOY RYAN B. ZABAL

A regional trial court denied the petition to issue a temporary restraining order (TRO) on the implementation of appropriation ordinances of the municipality of Kalibo, Aklan.  

Judge Cicero Lampasa of Branch 2 said “the Court is not persuaded that great or irreparable injury would result to the petitioners, before the writ of preliminary injunction could be heard.”

Last May, Randy Anthony Rebaldo and four incumbent Sangguniang Bayan members of Kalibo, namely, Mark Ace Bautista, Mark Vega Quimpo, Rey Tolentino and Gregorio Malapad, Jr. filed a separate special civil action against Kalibo mayor William Lachica, the Sangguniang Bayan of Kalibo represented by Vice Mayor Madeline Regalado and Acting Municipal Treasurer Rey Villaruel. 

The petition sought to nullify and prohibit the implementation of Appropriation Ordinance No. 2014-19 for the annual budget of the General Fund-Proper and Appropriation Ordinance No. 2014-20 for the annual budget of the General Fund-Municipal Economic Enterprise and Development Office (MEEDO) for fiscal year 2015.

They said “damage to their good names and reputations will be irreparable, irreversible and incapable of pecuniary quantification.’”

“Those who voted for them and other residents of Kalibo, Aklan will think that they were parties to the illegal passage and the implementation of the ordinances since they are members of the Sangguniang Bayan,” stated the petition on Civil Case No. 10072.

Judge Lampasa noted “the grounds/circumstances required for the TRO to issue, are simply not obtaining in the case at bar. Hence, the prayer for issuance of Temporary Restraining Order is thus denied."

Lampasa’s order was issued on June 22 and received by the Office of Municipal Mayor on July 1.

“Except for bare allegations, petitioners have not established to the satisfaction of the court that irreparable damage and/or injury will be suffered by them if TRO will not be issued,” the judge added.

The order also stated the plea of the petitioners for a writ of preliminary injunction will be heard on July 7.  

Meanwhile, the local government of Kalibo filed a petition on April 8 for a temporary restraining order in the regional trial court to nullify the Aklan SP Resolution No. 100 series of 2015 declaring the appropriation ordinances ‘inoperative in its entirety’.

Mayor Lachica argued “the inoperation of the 2015 appropriation ordinances is an extreme urgency matter causing tremendous delay in the implementation of the projects and programs in Kalibo.”

On April 28, Judge Elmo del Rosario of Branch 5 issued a writ of injunction in favor of the local government of Kalibo for special civil action case No. 10046.

Del Rosario invoked “the existence of the right to be protected and that the acts against which the injunction is to be directed are violative of said right.”