BAGUIO CITY – President Benigno Simeon C. Aquino III Saturday appointed former City Councilor Lilia G. Yaranon to occupy the 12th slot of the 12-member local legislative body to fill up the post vacated by his partymate, former City Councilor and incumbent Vice Mayor Edison R. Bilog following the law of succession after the untimely demise of Vice Mayor Daniel T. Farinas sometime in May last year.
Liberal Party (LP) insiders disclosed the 80-year old Yaranon, popularly known as ‘Mother Lily’ by the city’s electorate, is simply awaiting her appointment papers and is expected to take her oath as the newest member of the city council and then subsequently assume her post starting next Monday.
Yaranon edged losing LP congressional bet Mark Go, incumbent Upper Quezon Hill Punong Barangay Lea Farinas, widow of the late Vice Mayor and civic leader Joseph Cabato to the vacant slot in the city council caused by the application of the law of succession upon the former Vice Mayor’s demise due to complicated illness last year.
Yaranon is a well-known opposition leader in the city and is the wife of former Mayor and Regional Trial Court (RTC) Judge Braulio Yaranon, whose 3-year term as local chief executive from 2004-2007 was cut short after he was ordered suspended for one year because of alleged grave abuse of authority and grave misconduct.
Mayor Mauricio G. Domogan welcomed Yaranon’s appointment as the 12th city councilor, saying that the discretion of the President on whom to appoint in the vacant slot in the local legislative body must be respected with the hope that the local legislative body will be able to craft more measures beneficial to the welfare of the greater majority of the people of the city.
It can be recalled that the LP Baguio Chapter was divided on whom to endorse to replace the slot in the council vacated by Bilog after various LP members endorsed Mr. Go to be his replacement while another camp endorsed Cabato with incumbent city officials belonging to different political parties got their acts together and strngly endorsed Ms. Farinas to serve the unexpired term of the slot vacated by the incumbent Vice Mayor.
Domogan said the completed 2-man council, excluding the sectoral representatives from the Association of Barangay Councils (AC) and Sangguniang Kabataan Federation (SKF), will definitely be the city government’s partner in facilitating the implementation of more priority projects and significantly enhance the delivery of basic services to the people in the city’s 128 barangays.
By Dexter A. See
