Three lawyers from the Cebu City Legal Office will take charge of evaluating, filing and monitoring cases involving violations of local ordinances under a new arrangement aimed at improving the city’s enforcement of its laws.
Acting City Legal Officer Eleodoro Diaz IV designated lawyers Ramon Mikhail Duyongco, Christian Villacarlos and Marie Caitlin Kintanar as the personnel primarily responsible for handling the cases.
The designation was formalized through Memorandum No. 10-2026-0030, issued in compliance with Sangguniang Panlungsod (SP) Resolution No. 17-1274-2026 dated Oct. 13, 2026.
Under the memorandum, the three lawyers will oversee the “legal evaluation, preparation, filing, and follow-up of cases involving violations of City Ordinances” before the Office of the Cebu City Prosecutor.
Their tasks cover the legal processing of documented violations, including assessing complaints, preparing the necessary cases and coordinating their filing with the city prosecutor’s office.
The arrangement also assigns specific personnel to monitor cases after filing, with the aim of preventing complaints from being stalled during the legal process.
The designation follows a council initiative authored by Councilor Joel Garganera, which called for specialist lawyers to handle ordinance violation cases and address delays in pursuing legal action.
The resolution stressed that documenting violations would not be sufficient to ensure enforcement if complaints were not promptly evaluated and brought before the appropriate prosecutorial office.
It also called for stronger coordination between the City Legal Office and the departments responsible for implementing and enforcing local ordinances.
With Diaz’s memorandum, the proposed arrangement has moved into implementation, assigning three lawyers primary responsibility for advancing these cases.
The designation does not mean that every reported violation will automatically lead to prosecution. Complaints must still undergo legal evaluation, and the filing of cases will depend on the merits and sufficiency of the available evidence.
📷 Media courtesy of Cebu City Tourism Office
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