The Iloilo City Government appeared to have committed lapses in the delivery of an advisory to the operator of Rockwell Lumber Cockpit Arena in Lapuz district on cockfighting activities.
During a public consultation conducted by the City Council Tuesday, March 30, a City Hall worker admitted that he failed to deliver on time to Rodrigo Dellomes, operator of the cockpit arena, the advisory suspending cockfighting operations due to the rising cases of COVID-19.
Neil Escala, a job order personnel assigned at the Public Safety and Transportation Management Office (PSTMO), said in his affidavit that he did not deliver the advisory from the City Mayor’s Office (CMO) on March 22.
Esclala’s affidavit was presented by City Councilor Romel Duron, who sat as presiding officer.
According to Duron, citing the affidavit, Escala left the letter inside his car, the reason why the latter forgot to deliver it on the day he was tasked to do so.
Escala was able to deliver it only in the morning of March 23.
The controversial cockfighting activity was carried out from March 22 in the evening until March 23 in the morning.
Because of the lapses in the delivery, there were questions about the process of the delivery and the official messenger of the CMO.
It was also learned during the hearing that it was a police personnel and another City Hall worker who delivered the notice to the Iloilo Coliseum in Barangay San Isidro, Jaro district and the Mandurriao Cockpit Arena in Mandurriao district, respectively.
The two cockpit operators received the notice on time, thus, they temporarily ceased operations.
Meanwhile, Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG-Iloilo City) Director Oscar Lim, emphasized that even if the Inter-Agency Task Force issued a resolution suspending cockfighting activities and cockpit operations, a written order is still a must.
“Kon ako lang, ang basic gid na once wala mo officially ma receive ang communication, you cannot say nga ma-apply mo gid na sya kay ti ang Facebook ya, bal-an naton damu damo na da fake news,” said Lim.
“Siguro ang lapses ara the delivery, how come ang duha ka cockpits nakabaton and then the other one in La Puz did not receive it. Then there was an affidavit from the personnel of PSTMO. Abi ya siguro indi man importante, nalipatan ya,” he further said.
The DILG director commended the CMO for the immediate release advisories on the suspension of cockfighting activities.
City Councilor Rudolph Ganzon, on the other hand, pointed out that someone must be held liable for holding the cockfight despite the suspension.
Whether or not the notice was delivered on time, Ganzon stressed that the cockpit management knew from the very start that cockfighting is suspended because they even posted outside the arena that the “bulang” (cockfighting) there was suspended.
Despite this, cockfighting in the facility still transpired.
“Who will be liable for that?” Ganzon asked.
According to Duron, they will still for wait for the decision of Mayor Jerry Trenas who earlier issued a show-cause order to Dellomes.IMT
