Wednesday, November 15, 2006 Nalzaro: Alex Tolentino, again By Bobby Nalzaro Saksi
Earlier, I wrote about some Metropolitan Cebu Water District (MCWD) officials and employees questioning why lawyer Alex Tolentino is practicing his profession even if he is a full time employee of the water firm, which is a government-owned and controlled corporation.
Tolentino is also the president of the Integrated Bar of the Philippines Cebu City chapter.
In his defense, Tolentino said he has secured a permit to practice from the MCWD board. But the old board, according to sources, was the one that issued that permit. Since MCWD has a new board, he therefore needs to secure a fresh mandate from it.
Anyway, the Office of the Ombudsman Visayas is now looking into this issue after it came out in this column.
Now comes the accusation that Tolentino used his power and influence as MCWD official to harass a court opponent who is a concessionaire of the water firm.
Jennifer Griengo Chua reportedly considered as foul the act of MCWD servicemen in disconnecting the water connection in her residence in Forest Hills, Banawa last Nov. 8 without properly informing her about it.
Jennifer has a pending civil case against her brother-in-law, Anthony Chan Chua, with the Municipal Trial Court in Cities Branch 5. Chua’s legal counsel are Tolentino and a fellow MCWD lawyer, Francisco Pepito.
Chua is also Tolentino's brother in law. His wife is the sister of Tolentino.
Jennifer has been separated from her husband, Wilson Chua, for several years now. Wilson is now living in another place while Jennifer is staying with her four children at their conjugal residence in Banawa, which is now the subject of a pending case.
The water service account was under Wilson’s name but it was Jennifer who signed the application earlier in their marriage. Since Wilson left, Jennifer has been religiously paying the water bills.
But recently, without her knowledge, Wilson applied for permanent disconnection and the MCWD acted on it without the courtesy of informing or asking the house occupants about it. Jennifer felt that the unlawful, arbitrary and fraudulent disconnection violated her rights.
Jennifer volunteered to assume the MCWD account of her estranged husband but a top official of the water firm reportedly ignored her request without giving proper explanation. This prompted her to write a protest letter to MCWD general manager Armando Paredes and demanded for the immediate reconnection of their water meter.
Jennifer suspects that Tolentino had a hand in her predicament considering that he is the lawyer of MCWD and is her court opponent. Well, that's what we call personal interest.
