Bacolod City Mayor Alfredo Abelardo Benitez said yesterday he is asking Iloilo City Mayor Jerry Treñas to withdraw the declaration of persona non grata against Vice Mayor El Cid Familiaran over the issue involving the presence of Badjaos.

Treñas made the move on June 22 after criticizing the then-acting mayor for supposedly sending a group of Badjaos to Iloilo without coordination.

Benitez, who was on an official trip abroad at that time, had already apologized to Treñas.

“I have expressed concern that maybe he can recall his move to declare the vice mayor as persona non grata. Technically, there were lapses done that were not the vice mayor’s doing,” Benitez said in a press conference at the Bacolod City Government Center.

He added that the statement he addressed to Iloilo City was based on the actual report submitted by the city’s Department of Social Services and Development.

Treñas had accepted Benitez’s apology, but still sent back 77 Badjaos to Bacolod en route to their trip back to Zamboanga City via Dumaguete City in Negros Oriental province last weekend.

“I value very much the harmonious relations of both our cities,” Treñas said.

The Bacolod City government is also coordinating with the Department of Social Welfare and Development to send back 54 more Badjaos to Mindanao.

Reacting to Treñas’ declaration, Familiaran said the mayor could have investigated first before jumping the gun on blaming him for what happened, adding that the destination of the vessel boarded by the Badjaos was not Iloilo City, but Iloilo province’s Dumangas Port. (PNA)