A Jagna councilor allegedly assaulted a fellow municipal council member during a regular session of the town’s Sangguniang Bayan on Tuesday morning.
Councilor Arnoldo Peilago was caught on closed-circuit television (CCTV) camera as he took off his barong, casually walked towards Councilor Anthony Aniscal who had just arrived inside the session hall and punched him, causing commotion among the lawmakers.
Two videos taken from separate CCTV cameras showed confrontation between the two councilors inside the session hall and the lawmakers’ office cubicles.
According to Aniscal, he was hit in his shoulder when Peilago threw a punch during the encounter.
“Wa ko kabantay kay maoy paghangad nako,” Aniscal said.
The two scuffles were broken up by other SB members and personnel, some of whom were seen being pushed off by Peilago.
The heated encounter erupted reportedly due to Aniscal’s statements on Peilago’s efforts to bar vendors from selling their products at the Jagna plaza during the town’s fiesta last week.
Aniscal said that the initiative drew mixed reactions from the public and that he commented about the issue through a radio program in Jagna and through Facebook which irked Peilago.
“During the stint of the fiesta celebration, walay tinda sa plaza atbang simbahan. Siya ang nangusog og suggest dana, gisuportahan sa PNP Jagna chief ug mga members sa steering committee sa fiesta. Ang purpose aron dili trapik. Sa dihang vocal ang ubang reklamo sa Facebook nganong walay tinda, mingaw, akong gi explain sa radyo ug Facebook nga siya dana nangusog, maoy ijang gikasuk-an,” said Aniscal.
Following the heated encounters, intense emotions died down and the SB’s regular session continued, but with two police officers in attendance.
Vice Mayor Tedoro Abrenilla initially asked Aniscal to skip the session but he refused.
“Wa ko mo sugot kay ingon ko na ‘sa atong internal rules and procedure vice ang dili patambungon kanang nagdisplay og disorderly behavior…’ Ako ba diay nag disorderly behavior,” said Aniscal.
“Nagpadayon ra mi sa session, na-ok ra man. Wa na man pud siya magtingog-tingog,” he added.
Peilago has yet to issue a statement regarding the incident while Ansical, who is also a radio anchor for station dyRD, refused to comment on whether or not he will be filing a complaint against his colleague. (A. Doydora)