VM Alvin is Acting City Mayor

Dagupan City Vice Mayor Alvin Fernandez will be Acting City Mayor from August 16-21, 2005 after Mayor Benjamin Lim took a leave of absence for a personal trip to Guangzhou, China. The vice mayor received Mayor Lim’s letter this morning entrusting to him the affairs of the city government. Based on the provisions of the Local Government Code, when the city mayor is “temporarily incapacitated to perform his duties” for physical or legal reasons, such as travel abroad, the vice mayor shall automatically exercise the powers and perform the duties and functions of the local chief executive concerned. As acting city mayor, however, Fernandez cannot appoint, suspend or dismiss employees, unless the temporary incapacity exceeds 30 working days.