SC fines businessman
for indirect contempt
BY CARLA GOMEZ

The Supreme Court has cited a Bacolod businessman for indirect contempt of court and fined him P2,000.

The SC second division, in its resolution, said John Keng Seng alias John Sy, had filed a baseless and unfounded complaint against Bacolod Regional Trial Court Judge Roberto Chiongson and lawyer Gia Arinday, clerk of court of RTC Branch 54.

Chiongson yesterday said the businessman lodged the complaint when he ordered the removal of  a lis pendens (a notice that a property is being litigated in court) annotated at the back of a title by Sy. That order was correct, the judge said.

Seven barangay captains in Bacolod City are questioning the P150 million loan the city is securing from the Philippine National Bank for landbanking purposes and have requested that the city consider other options.

In their letter to the mayor dated Aug. 18, 2009, the barangay captains said the additional conditions required by PNB from the city could adversely affect the welfare of their barangays, especially their Internal Revenue Allotment share.

Barangay Captains Carlo Remo Barredo of Brgy. 20, Madeline Diaz – Brgy. 18, Jose Makilan – Brgy. 16, Harry Demapanag – Brgy.12, Caren Pineda – Brgy. 33, Jeffrey Quiachon – Brgy. 36 and Richard Sason – Brgy. 34, asked the city officials to consider other options.

It looks like there won’t be another Marañon-Zayco tandem in the 2010 elections after all.

Gov. Isidro Zayco said his brother Kabankalan Mayor Pedro Zayco is not interested in running for vice governor, he is more interested in running for board member.

At a United Negros Alliance meeting recently the possibility of an Alfredo Marañon Jr.-Pedro Zayco team for the top posts of Negros Occidental in 2010 was raised.

Marañon, the present Sagay City mayor, is the likely gubernatorial candidate of UNA with the incumbent governor saying he would much rather run for mayor of Kabankalan.