BAGUIO CITY – Mayor Mauricio G. Domogan challenged individuals and groups alleging corruption in the conduct of the month-long market encounter along major roads within Burnham Park to substantiate their accusations to be fair with the involved local officials.
The local chief executive pointed out it will be unfair to all city officials to be branded as corrupt due to sweeping allegations by certain individuals and groups whose intention is to ruin their reputations by making general statements without sufficient evidence.
“We urge the public to name the city officials involved in alleged corruption activities in the conduct of the Baguio Blooms Exhibitions and Expositions and to provide evidence to support their allegations so as not to ruin the reputation of city officials who are not involved in the alleged corruption activities of some of their colleagues,” Domogan stressed.
He also called on the market encounter organizer to divulge the identity of the city officials involved in supposed extortion activities in exchange for the approval of the closure of the roads to pave the way for the month-long event of the 23rd edition of Panagbenga or the Baguio flower festival to clear the other city officials who are being dragged into the issue when they have nothing to do about the questioned corruption.
According to him, it is unfair to allege that the corruption activities in this year’s flower festival is worst compared to the corruption done in the previous staging of the market encounter without evidence to support such accusation.
He rallied the support of the public in ascertaining the city officials involved in the reported extortion done on the trade fair organizer so that the untainted image of other city officials will be cleared and the public to judge the future of the politicians involved in such controversial activities.
He said that the trade fair organizer of the month-long market encounter directly remitted the agreed concession amount to the Baguio Flower Festival Foundation, Inc. (BFFFI) and that if there were some city officials who demanded for money way above the agreed amount, that is no longer the lookout of the BFFFI but that of the trade fair organizer.
The Baguio Blooms Exposition and Exhibition is one of the traditional events lined up by the BFFFI for the month-long conduct of the Panagbenga aimed at displaying featured flower-inspired products and the works of local landscapers that spice up the festive mood in the city.
While the private and public lives of politicians are open for scrutiny, Domogan claimed that it should not serve as a license for the public to simply hurl false allegations against them for whatever purpose the said accusations are intended.
Local politicians who are being linked to various controversies affecting the discharge of their duties and responsibilities should be always ready to explain their actions on certain matters affecting the interest of the public for them to be able to clarify whatever misconceptions about their actions in the past.
He claimed that it will now be up to the public to judge whether or not the concerned local officials had been performing their assigned duties and responsibilities pursuant to the norms of the society to avoid doubts on their having sought for election into public office.
By Dexter A. See
