By Felipe V. Celino
SIGMA, Capiz – Municipal Accountant John Joren dismissed allegations circulating on social media claiming that the Local Government Unit (LGU) of Sigma experienced a cash shortage and used funds from the Sigma Municipal Employees Multi-Purpose Cooperative (SMEMPC) to pay municipal workers’ salaries.
“It’s fake news that there was a cash shortage in the LGU of Sigma,” Joren said.
Speaking to Daily Guardian on Tuesday, Jan. 28, Joren denied that the municipal government borrowed money from the employees’ cooperative and insisted that no such shortage occurred under the administration of Mayor Dante Rizal Eslabon.
He clarified that before 2025, the municipality had PHP 7 million in funds, with an additional PHP 3.3 million in local collections, ensuring that funds remained available even though the national tax allocation had yet to arrive in January.
Joren emphasized that Mayor Eslabon is not a member of the cooperative and, therefore, cannot influence its funds. Even if he were a member, he said, the mayor could only apply for a personal loan, not one for all cooperative members.
He further stated that regular employees received their salaries on Jan. 15, while job order employees were paid on Jan. 20 and 21.
A one-day delay in some job order employees’ salaries occurred due to a salary increase for regular employees, which required a recalculation of withholding taxes and other contributions.
Earlier, a social media post alleged that the municipal government borrowed PHP 600,000 from the cooperative to pay employees’ salaries.
Joren dismissed this as misleading and politically motivated, saying it was meant to discredit Mayor Eslabon, who is seeking re-election in the midterm elections.
