A report from the Provincial Information and Media Relations (PRIMER) office insisted on Monday, May 10, 2021, that Gov. Arthur Yap and his party were denied access to a covered court in barangay Tipolo, Ubay supposedly for an aid distribution event. The said event was staged at another barangay within Ubay town.
The PRIMER report adds that the governor and his party were in Ubay on Sunday, May 9, 2021 to distribute the P25,000 financial aid given to each barangay in the province, including the 44 villages of Ubay.
According to the same PRIMER report, the coordinator of the governor’s party alleged that the covered court in barangay Tipolo was padlocked as it was further reported that the barangay captain of Tipolo allegedly refused to let the governor’s party use the said facility for the aid distribution event.
The PRIMER report mentions that the governor’s party was allegedly told, “kang [Cong. Erico Aristotle] Aumentado ang covered court ug iya [Aumentado] ang kapitan”.
The barangay aid distribution pushed through in barangay Union, after the governor’s party was allegedly denied access to Tipolo’s covered court for the aid distribution, the PRIMER report says.
In a telephone interview on Monday evening (today), Tipolo barangay captain Maila Zapanta clarified that she had no intention to deny the governor and his party the opportunity to visit her village and conduct the distribution of barangay aid. She impressed that she is more than happy to receive the governor in her barangay as the latter was bringing aid to barangays.
In the same interview, Zapanta said that she was given short notice about the arrival of the governor in her barangay.
Zapanta added that she was slated to have her medical check-up on the day of the governor’s visit and she also had other prior commitments last Sunday.
Zapanta said that If only she received even a one day advance notice about the governor’s visit, she would have been able to find a way to squeeze the governor’s visit in her schedule.
At the same time, Zapanta said, the advance notice would have given her time to ask someone to clean the covered court, which has been padlocked to prevent kids from playing basketball. Zapanta said, too, that playing basketball is not allowed at this time due to the pandemic as Bohol remains under the modified general community quarantine.status.
Zapanta said that she only learned about the visit of the governor only hours prior to the governor’s supposed arrival at barangay Tipolo. Moreover, Zapanta said that she told the governor’s party emissary to hold the distribution of the aid in barangay Union instead, as she was unprepared to meet the governor.
The Tipolo barangay captain told The Bohol Tribune that her barangay treasurer received the aid alloted for barangay Tipolo coming from the provincial government.