Pasig City Mayor Vico Sotto was surprised when some supposed protesters of Pasig City‘s planned new city hall asked to take pictures with him.
The city chief on Monday said that an advisory was sent to some reporters alerting them of a “large protest” in front of the Pasig City Hall on August 12, which will be attended by over 300 Pasig residents.
“Nakarating ito sa akin, kaya 10 a.m. kanina, pinuntahan ko sila. Dahil OPEN naman tayo sa mga tanong,” he wrote on Facebook.
“KASO LANG, pagdating ko sa kanilang ‘rally’ kuno, puro naman HAKOT MULA SA QUEZON CITY ang naabutan ko,” Sotto added.
The mayor also uploaded a video where some protesters admitted that they are from Quezon City and not Pasig.
In the clip, Sotto opened the floor for any questions related to the planned new city hall.
One of the “protesters” suddenly asked him if they could have a “picture” with the mayor.
An individual also asked three protesters about their reason for attending the supposed rally.
“Gusto lang namin makita si mayor kasi,” one of them said.
“Sa totoo lang, sinama lang talaga kami,” another answered .
When the individual confirmed that they had no idea why they were in the “rally,” they shook their heads.
“Hindi namin alam, wala kaming idea, promise!” an individual said.
The protesters continued to insist that they were only told to come to the site of the supposed “rally.”
“Gusto lang talaga namin makita si mayor,” one of them said.
“Ang pogi!” another added.
“Gusto ko ngang makipag-picture kanina,” an individual continued.
In the caption, Sotto said that when he visited the supposed protesters, he came upon a “comedy” instead.
Despite the incident, the mayor said he is still open to questions and other concerns about the planned construction of the city hall.
“Handa tayo para rito, dahil ang ginagawa natin ay napag-isipan nang maigi, maganda [or] kailangan para sa kinabukasan ng lungsod, at transparent ang proseso,” Sotto said.
The millennial mayor attributed the supposed protest as part of the “dirty tactics” of a political group.
He is expected to run for reelection in the May 2025 midterm elections.
“At tungkol naman po sa New City Hall, asahan niyo na magiging available sa publiko ang Detailed Costing nito kapag na-finalize na ito (design and build modality po kasi, at sa ngayon ay may requirements pa ang winning bidder bago tayo tumungo sa contract signing),” Sotto said.
The new city hall
Sotto’s administration plans to build a new Pasig City Hall, an initiative that was unveiled in July last year and formally announced in July this year.
An report of Spot.ph said that the city chief wanted it for safety purposes, with the report saying that the old city hall has “cracks in walls, uneven flooring” and “structurally inadequate columns and beams.”
In the interview, Sotto bared that a loud explosion happened in 2019. It was attributed to a movement between the seventh and eighth floors, but the origin remained unknown.
In late 2023, some city hall workers rushed out of the building when they felt it shaking. It was later discovered that there were no earthquakes in or near the area.
“So gumalaw lang talaga ‘yung building mag-isa. Structure mismo siya,” Sotto told Spot.ph before.
According to the report, the P9.6 billion project is not just for the new city hall itself, but for upgrading the entire complex.
The mayor said they plan to have evacuation centers and a senior citizen center as well as an open park where people can enjoy fresh air.
