Pacanan hurt by ‘unfair’ persona non grata tag

By Rjay Zuriaga Castor

Iloilo City District Engineering Office (ICDEO) officer-in-charge Roy Pacanan said he was deeply hurt by the two persona non grata declarations issued against him in 2024 by former Iloilo City Mayor Jerry Treñas and the City Council.

“Personally, it is quite hurtful, especially their reason to declare me persona non grata,” he said in a chance interview during an inspection of a flood project on Aug. 15.

In 2024, Treñas issued an executive order declaring Pacanan unwelcome in the city, while the City Council also passed a resolution with the same effect.

The declarations cited two main issues: delay in vacating the ICDEO office from a city-owned lot in Fort San Pedro, which the local government considered disrespectful, and failure to comply with building permit requirements, which allegedly delayed infrastructure projects.

Pacanan clarified that he only assumed office in August 2023 and that relocating the ICDEO required approval and budget allocations from the central office.

On the issue of permits, he argued that the absence of permits in some ICDEO infrastructure projects predated his tenure, going back to Treñas’ time as the city’s lone district representative.

“Since I assumed office in August 2023, we have already secured and processed the permits,” he said.

“I find it unfair, their reasoning in declaring me persona non grata,” he added.

Pacanan said it would be “insulting” for him to step inside City Hall or the legislative building after being tagged as unwelcome.

“It feels very degrading on my part. I have already been insulted, embarrassed, and humiliated in every way. It would be like humiliating myself further if I go to City Hall or the City Council Legislative Building, which has declared that I am not welcome,” he said.

Pacanan also maintained that the ICDEO has repeatedly sought coordination with the city government regarding project implementation, but their efforts went unanswered.

He said he was surprised by the city’s accusations of non-coordination when projects were already ongoing.

“We have all the documentation to prove our claim and all of that is documented,” he said, adding that accusations of non-coordination are “always recycled.”