Garcia Hernandez mayor Tita Baja answered the show cause order issued by the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) in relation to the allegations that the former violated health and safety protocol and secured a certificate of indigency to get financial assistance to pay her hospital bill.
Baja sent her reply to DILG Sec. Eduardo Año thru Usec. Epimaco Densing on Aug. 2, 2021.
It can be remembered that Densing signed a show cause order dated July 21, 2021 ordering the Garcia Hernandez mayor to explain her side regarding the complaint which was filed by a certain Elayne Bond.
In her reply to the DILG’s show cause order, Baja claimed that she never instructed her staff to secure a certificate of indigency.
Upon investigation, the mayor said, it was an honest mistake on the part of her staff tasked to fulfill the requirements to obtain financial help from Malacañang to help pay the mayor’s hospital bill.
The mayor incurred a huge hospital bill after she was admitted in a Tagbilaran private hospital after catching Coronavirus disease (Covid).
Baja further alleged that the Punong Barangay signed the certificate of indigency not knowing that it was for the Garcia-Hernandez mayor.
The mayor said the certificate of indigency was stolen and alleged that a copy landed in the hands of the mayor’s political opponents,
She said her municipal administrator made a letter request for financial assistance to Malacañang because her hospital bill amounting to P181,941.58 was not reduced due to a conflict with her name with Philhealth.
According to Baja, her name in the Philhealth records still reflect her married name. The mayor has reverted to her maiden name after she had her marriage annulled.
Ultimately, after her documents with Philheath were corrected, her bill was reduced to P86,812.29. Thus, she no longer needed to get financial assistance to pay the hospital bill.
She claims that the documents needed to secure financial assistance were never forwarded to Malacañang.
As for the allegation for protocol violation, Baja submitted a medical certificate that she already completed her quarantine after getting infected of Covid.
The said medical certificate was signed by Garcia Hernandez Municipal Health Officer Dr. Enriquieto Acenas on July 12, 2021 saying the mayor was fully recovered from Covid as of July 3, 2021.
The issue stems from the allegation that Baja met with Sen. Christopher Go and Sec. Harry Roque on July 11, 2021 and that the mayor was supposed to be under quarantine.
There were allegations that the Garcia-Hernandez mayor removed her face mask while mingling with top national government officials.
In a telephone interview with Baja, she flatly denied the allegations as she already explained her side in several fora.
The mayor chided her political adversaries for creating issues against her.