Junjun Binay | The Adobo Chronicles

Capture MAKATI CITY, Philippines (The Adobo Chronicles) – Will the real mayor of Makati City please step forward?

Well, there’s actually two mayors right now – Incumbent Mayor Junjun Binay and Vice Mayor Romulo Peña, each claiming to be the legitimate head of the Philippines’ richest city.

It all started when the Philippine Ombudsman issued an order suspending Binay for six months in connection with the alleged overpricing of Makati City Hall Building II.

Soon after the order was served on Binay, Vice Mayor Peña was sworn into office as the acting mayor.

Binay claimed that he was still in charge of the city despite the Ombudsman’s order suspending him for six months. He said that the Court of Appeals granted his request for a temporary restraining order which had effectively stayed his suspension.

Not so, claimed the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG), Ombudsman Conchita Carpio Morales and Justice Secretary Leila de Lima, noting that the TRO was moot and academic because Peña had been sworn in as acting mayor on March 16 hours before the TRO was issued.

Since the suspension order was issued, Binay has been camping out in his office at the Makati City Hall, backed by supporters who were fed take out fried chicken and spaghetti (presumably from Jollibee). Peña, who claims he is the acting mayor since he took oath when the suspension order was served on Binay, has been holding office at the old City Hall building nearby.

Finally, both “mayors” announced they have come to an agreement to end the week-long standoff.

“We have decided that both of us can be mayor,” Binay said. “We have agreed to divide Makati City into two jurisdictions — east and west of the Epifanio delos Santos Avenue (EDSA). EDSA is Metro Manila’s main thoroughfare that runs through many cities in the metropolis, including Makati.

I will be mayor of the East side and Peña will be mayor of the West side.”

Two Makatis : East and West sides of EDSA Avenue

All’s well that ends well.

Makati City, Philippines – Makati is known as the Wall Street of the Philippines , a financial hub where towering offices, hotels and condos dwarf the squatter shanties just a stone’s throw away. It is also known for its feisty mayor Junjun Binay, son of the incumbent vice president and brother to two other Binays, a senator and a congresswoman.

Mayor Binay was recently embroiled in a controversy where he tried to bully his way into a private upscale residential village because he wanted a shorter, traffic- free route to his destination. When the village security guards refused passage to the mayor’s convoy, he made sure the security guards were “invited” to the local police precint for questioning.

But that controversy is gone now and the mayor is buoyed up by news that Makati has achieved a prestigious world record – the number one spot in fact – which he attributes to his administration. Makati has just been named top ‘selfie capital’ of the world, according to Instagram records. Makati topped the list with 258 selfie takers per 100,000 people. Makati has a population of 500,000.

To celebrate this great honor, Mayor Binay has declared March 14 as a city-wide holiday with a ticker tape parade scheduled at 11 am. Binay is urging all Makati residents to take to the streets that day and not to leave their homes without their smart phones. According to Binay’s brilliant plan, at exactly 12 noon, all parade participants and spectators will be asked to take a selfie with their smart phones. Apparently, Binay is aiming for another world record, the most number of selfies taken at the exact same time.

Pasig, a Metro Manila suburb was named top selfie capital, along with Makati, but Pasig residents don’t think it is such a big deal. The same sentiment has been expressed by Cebu City in Central Philippines which was ranked number 9 in the world. So no ticker tape parade or holidays in either Pasig or Cebu.