Tom’s lawyer tells Labella: Show your health records

CEBU, Philippines —  A lawyer for former Cebu City mayor Tomas Osmeña is challenging the City Hall to release Mayor Edgardo Labella’s medical records to the public.

In a Facebook post, Lawyer Amando Virgil Ligutan, Osmeña's legal counsel, said Labella's health is of public concern and something the public has the right to know.

Ligutan said Labella should be transparent about his health just like Osmeña whose “battle against cancer was out in the open.”

He made the post after Osmeña was “attacked” following his suggestions on how to handle the crisis brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic.

“In response, some City Hall officials shared a post saying that he is physically and mentally weak, being a senior citizen and a cancer survivor at that. They said he would not be fit to lead the city in this time of pandemic. Instead of listening to Tomas Osmeña’s suggestions, they attacked his person. Interesting,” read a portion of Ligutan’s post.

“Now, let us ask the question -- How about Mayor Labella? What do we know about his health? People are noticing the resting tremors of his hands. Is Mayor Labella physically fit to lead the city? Why don’t City Hall release to the public Mayor Labella’s medical records,” the post further read.

Ligutan, however, clarified that they do not wish Labella to be ill but good health in this time of crisis.

“But he should also be subjected to scrutiny, like what they are doing to Tomas Osmeña,” said Ligutan.

Ligutan said Osmeña had cancer and is now cured, which makes him now among the countless cancer survivors who are living normal lives.

He added the former mayor is vulnerable to COVID-19 as he is a senior citizen, precisely the reason why Labella issued an executive order prohibiting senior citizens from going out because they are vulnerable to the virus.

He also pointed out that same with Osmeña, Labella is already a senior citizen and is also vulnerable to COVID-19.

However, Ligutan stressed that Osmeña is not physically frail and is as fit as any other person in his/her 70s.

Osmeña earlier expressed his sentiment on the abolition of the City Hall’s long-life program.

The long-life program was established during his term as a systematic way of distributing maintenance medicine to the homes of the resident-beneficiaries through the barangays.

The program hired 800 volunteers paid P100 per day to distribute the medicine and vitamins to the beneficiaries. This was later abolished by Labella, who instead hired health care workers to manage the distribution of medicine in the barangays.

For Osmeña, the project could have helped boost the immune system of the residents and could even be adopted for the distribution of aid to the affected residents of COVID-19.

In a previous interview, Labella said that the former mayor could air his opinions and suggest solutions as this was his right.

The mayor said he was not closing his doors to the suggestions of Osmeña since every suggestion was welcomed by the city government amid these trying times.

“The city needs help. We need to stop denying that fact. Somebody has to tell the mayor to listen to suggestions and constructive criticisms. They should not call those who don’t agree with them and point out their mistakes as anti-Labella,” said Ligutan.

“People can also be pro-Cebu and not necessarily anti-Labella. This is not only their fight. This is also our fight against the virus,” he added.  JMD (FREEMAN)