TACLOBAN CITY- Northern Samar Governor Jose Ong slapped a libel charge against former congressman and governor, Raul Daza, for allegedly claiming that he was in Hong Kong and Macau while their province was reeling from the aftermath of supertyphoon Yolanda. In his six-page complaint filed before the Provincial Prosecutor’s Office on May 6, this year, Ong also demanded P2 million damages which he said he would donate to the victims of Yolanda once he collected the amount. Daza, who lost on his reelection bid for Northern Samar’s first congressional district during the 2010 elections, reportedly uttered the libelous statements against the governor during his radio interview aired over DySM on November 21, 2013. Daza, who is a lawyer by profession, said that he has yet to receive a copy of the complaint filed against him by Ong. “But of course, I will answer it. It’s just a libel case; nobody gets imprisonment because of libel. Or perhaps, I will be the first non-journalist to get in imprison,” Daza said, downplaying the complaint against him, when reached for his comment. But Gov. Ong said that the claims made by Daza over a radio interview were malicious as these were not true. “Daza’s accusations and imputations against me are wrong, false, and untrue. The broadcasted accusations are deliberate malicious imputation of crimes (or unlawful acts, at the very least) that caused or tended to cause me dishonor, discredit or contempt,” Ong said in his complaint-affidavit. “I have carefully and painstakingly built and nurtured my reputation as a public officer and businessman over the years and I cannot allow anyone to destroy and tarnish it with lies and falsehoods,” the Northern Samar governor said. Daza, in his radio interview, reportedly claimed that Ong was not in Catarman, the provincial capital, to attend the needs of the typhoon victims describing him as “inutil” and that he was in Hong Kong and Macau with his wife, Desiree. Daza also allegedly claimed that the provincial government under Ong did not even bothered to help Yolanda victims from the region as he said that the governor asked Vice Gov.Gary Levin to “cover up and lie” on his whereabouts at that time. “The imputation that I was not in Northern Samar or did not act or do anything before, during and after Typhoon Yolanda is a complete lie,” Ong said. He maintained that he distributed relief assistance to the towns of Mondragon, San Roque, Catubig and Las Navas; convened the provincial disaster council; inspected the condition of major infrastructure facilities and donated sacks of rice and boxes of sardines for victims in Samar and Eastern Samar provinces. The governor said that alluding that he was in his province during the onslaught of Yolanda could be labeled as dereliction of duty in times of disaster which is punishable under Republic Act 10121, the law governing on risk reduction management act. Gov. Ong also said that mere mention of Hong Kong and Macau, considered among the favored gambling and leisure countries, would picture him as “irresponsible, insensitive and callous.” “Unfortunately for Daza, his lie falls flat on its face- I was in Catarman, Northern Samar, on the day typhoon Yolanda struck and remained there until approximately one week after,” Ong said. (By: Joey A. Gabieta)
