The Save Bacolod Movement, Inc. (SBMI) yesterday revealed plans to file a case against City Councilor Wilson Gamboa, Jr. before the Office of the Ombudsman surrounding P1.5 million in allegedly unliquidated funds provided for the Philippine Councilors League (PCL), where Gamboa previously served as Bacolod chapter president.

According to SBMI chairman Samuel Montoyo, who also serves as an executive assistant to Bacolod City Mayor Evelio Leonardia, between 2013 and 2016, when Gamboa was at the helm of the organization, there was a reported P2 million in outstanding unliquidated funds, with P500,000 considered to be a “questionable liquidation” for various medicine.

The medicine was reportedly distributed in Bacolod City Barangays Mandalagan, Cabug, Taculing, Handumanan, and Villamonte. However, according to Montoyo, the authenticity of the liquidation is reportedly questionable as there is no list of purok presidents verifying receipt of the goods, along with no record of there being any medical missions or medicine distributions in Barangays Mandalagan and Taculing during that time.

The SBMI chairman said he plans to bring Gamboa up on charges of falsification of public documents; malversation of public funds; and violations to RA 3019, or the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act.

In response, Gamboa said of Montoyo, “He is a slanderer.”

“As far as the [Commission on Audit] is concerned, I submitted the report to [them] as early as last year, May or June,” the city councilor explained.

He added, funding for the current PCL would not have been released if requirements of the previous administration had not been cleared.

Gamboa said the P1.5 million in question was equally distributed to all city councilors and said all who received the funds should be held liable for any alleged transgressions.

“I will hold the rest of the councilors as my co-defendants,” he affirmed.

The city councilor believes SBMI is on a “witch hunt” following his call for an inquiry into the P8 million budget provided for the Bacolod City Government Employees Union (BCGEU) Year-End Assessment and Christmas Party.

Montoyo previously brought former Bacolod City Mayor Monico Puentevella up on multiple charges, along with claims made in 2016, where he blamed the former mayor for the traffic conditions in the city.

The executive assistant questioned if the former mayor intentionally caused traffic tie-ups as “punishment” for the city after losing re-election./NC, WDJ