By Dominique Gabriel G. Bañaga

Former Bacolod City Mayor Monico Puentevella left the matter of answering the order filed by the Office of the President, surrounding allegations of improper collection of real property tax (RPT), to his attorney.
Puentevella was earlier served a letter from acting Deputy Executive Secretary for Legal Affairs Ryan Alvin Acosta to respond to claims filed by Samuel Montoyo, who said he filed the complaint on behalf of the Save Bacolod Movement, Inc. activist group.
He called the RPT measure “oppressive, confiscatory, and unjust,” echoing the exact sentiment in the case filed by current Bacolod City Mayor Evelio Leonardia as Bacolod Lone District representative.
Montoyo alleged, after the Department of Justice rendered the RPT resolution unconstitutional, deeming it null and void, Puentevella continued to collect revenue.
Meanwhile, in a Bombo Radyo-Bacolod interview, Puentevella spokesperson and executive assistant Sarah Esguerra questioned why City Legal Officer, Atty. Joselito Bayatan, who previously held a press conference to discuss the order, is simultaneously acting as a spokesperson for Montoyo and representing the Save Bacolod Movement.
Esguerra said Bayatan, essentially, provided a statement on behalf of Montoyo./WDJ