“I can monitor everything and give instructions from here (the hospital). I will do the best I can to continue to protect the Ilonggos from this pandemic,” said Treñas in a statement released Thursday, June 10.
The night before, he released a statement saying he had to be hospitalized for “full checkup and complete rest” due to overfatigue as Iloilo City is struggling to contain the rising number of COVID-19 cases.
Over the past week, Treñas underwent COVID-19 testing at least twice after experiencing symptoms. In both instances, he tested negative.
While Treñas was urging Ilonggos to pray for his recovery, he also faced criticisms for announcing the appointment of his nephew, city Councilor Jay Treñas, as the officer-in-charge (OIC) of the Iloilo City government.
Treñas, a lawyer himself, withdrew his order and said there’s no need to appoint an OIC as he can monitor things by himself while at the hospital.
He withdrew his order after Atty. Joshua Alim, a former city councilor, raised legal concern over the rules of succession as Vice Mayor Jeffrey Ganzon could not assume the functions of the city mayor as the vice mayor himself is one of the more than 2,000 active COVID-19 cases in the city. Alim pointed out that it should have been the No. 1 city councilor.
Atty. Dominador Tersol, a former regional director of the Commission on Audit (COA), said that Treñas had to lift his order as it violated Section 46 of the Local Government Code. Otherwise, Treñas can face charges for violating the law.