BY VICTOR REYES
INTERIOR Secretary Benjamin Abalos Jr. has ordered Negros Oriental Gov. Pryde Henry Teves to step down and allow former Gov. Roel Degamo to assume his post.
The Commission on Elections (Comelec) has recently invalidated the victory of Teves in the May local elections after declaring one “Ruel Degamo,” who ran for the gubernatorial post, as a nuisance candidate.
The 49,039 votes garnered by “Ruel Degamo” were added to Roel Degamo’s 277,462 votes, giving the latter a total of 326,501 votes to upset Teves’ 296,897 votes.
On Wednesday, Teves said he will stay as governor of the province, pointing out that the Supreme Court has yet to rule on his petition for a temporary restraining order (TRO) against the implementation of the Comelec ruling.
Teves said there was also still no order uninstalling or unseating him as governor.
Abalos said the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) has ordered DILG Central Visayas director Leocadio Trovela and department officials in Negros Oriental “to facilitate the smooth transition of duties and responsibilities” of the governor from Teves to Degamo pursuant to the writ of execution issued by the Comelec en banc last September 7.
“In the absence of a TRO or a ruling from a high court, the DILG finds no reason to prevent Degamo from assuming his office as governor of Negros Oriental as Comelec under its authority has already proclaimed him winner,” said Abalos.
“We, therefore, advise Mr. Teves to respect and adhere to the Comelec ruling and recognize the supremacy and authority of the commission in election-related issues to ensure the continuous delivery of public services in the province for the sake of Negrenses,” added Abalos.”
Abalos noted Degamo has already taken his oath before President Marcos Jr and barangay officials. Also, he said the SC has yet to grant Teves’ petition for a TRO.
Told that Teves has yet to step down, Abalos said “Well, we are going to talk to him.”
“But I heard in some of his interviews that he is going to respect (the) order from the DILG or the court,” Abalos said.
The Negros Oriental provincial government, in its Facebook page, yesterday posted: “Governor Henry Teves informed the department/unit/division heads (on Wednesday) that he is still the official governor of the province unless uninstalled by the proper authorities.”
