• GILBERT P. BAYORAN
Capitol union president Renelo Lastierre yesterday questioned the process of his ouster as chairman of the Progressive Alliance of Capitol Employees (PACE), by members of the board of directors.
“They deceitfully gathered and declared a new set of officers,” Lastierre said, stressing that he was deprived of the right to be heard in the mentioned loss of confidence.
Lastierre said he was served a notice of meeting, signed by the PACE Secretary Merly Frio, with the union office as the venue. He said they were nowhere to be found when he went to the agreed venue, with some members of the board of directors.
Nine of the 11 members of the PACE of board directors voted to replace Lastierre.
As a union, they should have observed due process, as we are supposed to be a defender of due process, but that is not the case, Lastierre said.
They intentionally and deceitfully executed a deliberately planned action, as if well instructed maliciously, and without regards to proper procedure, he stressed.
If they just take the vote of no confidence in my presence, I would respect the same, he said.
Since it was not morally sanctioned, Lastierre said he will bring the matter, and question it, in a proper venue.
Stressing also that his mandate comes from the Capitol employees, Lastierre further said that their act of not observing the morally upright process is a slap to that very mandate, as they have forgotten the real purpose of unionism, as a defender of employees’ rights, especially the oppressed ones.
If this the value they would like to propagate, then it would useless for the union to exist, because the protection of employees’ rights ceases, as their value ceases to exist.*
