Declare me true mayor,
Gamban asks Comelec
BY CARLA GOMEZ

Carlo Gamban Saturday filed a motion for reconsideration before the Commission on Elections en banc asking it to declare and affirm him instead as the true, rightful and legitimate winner of the May 11, 2004 Silay City election for mayor.

The COMELEC First Division in a resolution promulgated Feb. 1 directed Gamban to cease and desist from performing his functions as mayor of Silay and to relinquish the post to Jose "Oti" Montelibano. Montelibano obtained 19,392 votes, or a plurality of 138 votes over Gamban's votes of P19,254, the COMELEC First Division said.

The examination and appreciation of ballots made by the COMELEC First Division exhibit a deliberate disregard for the will of the Silay City voters to the extent that its ruling is at war with the law and records of the case, Gamban said.

'Arroyo offers Cano
post so he won't run'
BY CHRYSEE SAMILLANO

The President has offered Transportation and Communications Assistant Secretary Ricardo Tan a higher position in exchange for not running for mayor of Bacolod City, a highly reliable source, who asked not to be identified, told the DAILY STAR last night.

President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo had reportedly offered Tan the position of Land Transportation Office-National Capital Region head after her meeting with the mayors of the third district of Negros Occidental upon her arrival in Bacolod City Friday.

The President had requested Tan to make a "personal sacrifice" by not pursuing his plans to run for mayor of Bacolod as she had reportedly signed his appointment already, the source said. Tan refused to comment on the matter when asked for his reaction.

Gloria assures
P6M for MKNP

President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo has assured the release of an initial amount of about P6 million for the Mt. Kanlaon Natural Park, Rep. Carlos Cojuangco (Neg. Occ., 4th district) said yesterday.

Cojuangco, author of Republic Act 9154 otherwise known as the Mt. Kanlaon Natural Park Act of 2001, said he had included the funding for the setting up of the MKNP office in his bill but the actual release of the funds did not take place because the government had been operating on reenacted budgets for the last two years. RA 9154 is an act establishing Mt. Kanlaon located in the cities of Bago, La Carlota and San Carlos, and the towns of La Castellana and Murcia in Negros Occidental, and Canlaon City and Vallehermoso town in Negros Oriental as a protected area covering 24,388 hectares.