Barangay captain responds to Tulfo

I write this in connection with: first, a column by Ramon Tulfo (“A grave injustice, INQUIRER.net, 3/15/13), which was also published in the Inquirer’s March 16 print edition; and second, another Tulfo column which appeared in the April 2 edition of the Inquirer’s sister publication Bandera.

In his Inquirer column, Tulfo categorically called for my resignation should I not be able to control my subordinates in Barangay Fort Bonifacio, Taguig City, where I am currently the barangay captain. He then described an alleged accident somewhere in Edsa, Pasay City, involving a taxicab driven by a certain Noel Bulaay and a van purportedly owned by me.

Tulfo said that Bulaay “was brought to Barangay Fort Bonifacio” and that “the guards and policemen assigned at the barangay handcuffed” him, “beat him up and took his day’s earnings and P5,000 in cash.” Tulfo then asked: “For a minor traffic incident, why should Bulaay be handcuffed and beaten up?”

The Bandera column referred to the same alleged incident, but went a step further by ascribing, solely on the word of Bulaay, abuse on my part.

Tulfo claimed that he tried to get my side but my aides told him I was too busy. Later on, though, he gave as reason my supposedly definitive refusal to speak with him.

For clarification, the incident occurred on March 7, 2013. In other words, the first time Tulfo mentioned it in a column, more than a week had gone by. By then, the matter had already been privately settled fully with the offended parties by the owner of the taxicab as the vehicle at-fault.

And contrary to what was reported, the van in the accident is not my private property but the property of Barangay Fort Bonifacio.

As to Tulfo’s conditional call for my resignation, as well as the serious charges reportedly made by Bulaay against the law enforcers of Barangay Fort Bonifacio, I am assuring Tulfo and the public that the matter is duly, properly and thoroughly being investigated. I accept that the responsibility of maintaining a responsive, dutiful and honest barangay unit falls squarely on my shoulders. It is a duty I regard with utmost importance. Any degree of proven wrongdoing or injustice by the duly elected and appointed officials of our barangay will, therefore, never be tolerated and will be immediately meted out the proper sanction under the law.

Lastly, I apologize for any instance of inattention and/or lack of due regard by any of my staff in the performance of duty. As our established procedure dictates, any detailed statement regarding the incident at hand will be released by my office only after proper investigation and according to due process. Once our investigation is completed, I will  readily cooperate with any member of the Philippine media in order to give our public a true and accurate account of the matter and of its consequent resolution.

—LINO S. CAYETANO,

 barangay captain,

Fort Bonifacio, Taguig City