Tuesday, February 11, 2014

This Is Shameful. Are These Baguio City Kagawads Bullying Their Constituents? Watch The Video And You Be The Judge.

We've wrote about this yesterday. You can read our original post here but basically the issue surrounds a kagawad (or two) from barangay Campo Filipino who allegedly abused their power as elected public officials when they harassed some of their constituents during an incident there. The kagawads got involved in an altercation with some members of the community. There was shouting and shoving. A kagawad allegedly snatched a person's tablet gadget, threw it to the ground, destroying it in the process.

Guia Limpin, a resident in the barangay and among those involved in the altercation posted her side of the story on Facebook. Her account of the event is as follows:
I went to the Barangay Hall at 10 am with 25 kilos of good rice to exchange with the NFA rice issued by DSWD to teacher Linda of our Day care center. While we were having picture taking session with the children and mothers in the cramped up space given to them, two barangay kagawads started shouting from the second floor of the Barangay Hall saying that we have no right to be taking pictures in the Barangay Hall.

I turned my tablet to get their pictures as they were shouting at us and this kagawad named Abdulfatah Talib came with such RAGE towards me and grabbed my tablet. My neighbor, Mrs Carbonell, and I went after him up the stairs when this honorable kagawad Talib slammed the tablet on the steps. I tried to pick it up ahead of him but he pushed me away and got the tablet. And this honorale Abdulfatah Talib got to the veranda of the Barangay Hall and was slamming the tablet against the iron railing of the veranda in his RAGE.

I called for the police in the middle of the frightened and angry mothers of the daycare pupils. Glad the police officers came so fast.

This is to unearthed the dirt they wallow in with the protection of their so-called positions. 


Limpin has also posted on Facebook a video of the incident. You can watch the video below. That's solid evidence of the allegations as the scenes in the video confirm the event as narrated by Limpin in her original Facebook post. The video clearly shows a man in white throwing a tablet on the stairs.




Here's the thing. The whole story isn't out yet. We've only heard and seen Limpin's version of the events. We are yet to hear the side of the barangay kagawads. However, at this point, the kagawads are the ones who seem to be in the wrong. The way they were acting isn't something you would expect from decent public officials. The other sad thing is that they were shouting in front of Day Care Center kids. Could they not turn down their voices and settle the matter in a civilized manner? The way responsible public officials should?

Another thing I would wish to point out is the way some people are turning this issue into a race thing. The kagawads involved are Muslims. Reading the comments of some people on Facebook, they seem to be pushing the idea that Muslims have no right to be serving as public officials here in Baguio City. This idea is just wrong. A Muslim has the right to run for public office, the same right that an Igorot, Ilocano, or Tagalog has.

Let's stick to the issue of "abuse of power". This is not about race or religion. Muslim or Christian, taga-Cordillera or taga-Mindanao, if he abused his power, take him out of there.