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Wednesday, April 12, 2006
Provincial exec appeals dismissal order
DAVAO Oriental Provincial Board Member Maria Consuelo Palma Gil sought the reconsideration of the Mindanao Ombudsman's earlier decision dismissing her from the service over allegations of hiring ghost employees during her previous term.
Palma Gil's motion for reconsideration dated March 30 said her reelection in 2004 has rendered the administrative case against her "moot and academic."
Palma Gil said the Supreme Court over a long line of cases has been very clear and consistent on the rule that a public official cannot be removed for administrative misconduct committed during a prior term.
"Since her (Palma Gil) reelection to office operates as a condonation of the officer's previous misconduct, to the extent of cutting off the right to remove her therefore," Gil's counsel said in their motion.
For this, Palma Gil moved for the setting aside of the Ombudsman Mindanao's dismissal order dated November 13, 2003, which was only approved by the Office of the Ombudsman in Quezon City on March 13, 2006.
She also prayed for the dismissal of the grave misconduct, dishonesty, and conduct prejudicial to the best interest of the service charges filed against her by relative Rosie Bajenting.
Aside from the administrative cases, the Ombudsman also recommended the filing of criminal cases of five counts of estafa through falsification of public documents against the board member, who is the daughter of Governor Elena T. Palma Gil.
The Ombudsman also recommended the filing of charges in violation of the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act against the lady lawmaker.
Ombudsman Assistant Special Prosecutor Gat Marie Lubigan found probable cause to file charges against Palma Gil for hiring ghost employees identified as Norman Jacinto Doral, Sergio Andrade, Derrick Andrade, Chona Andrade, and Jerico Ebita.
Investigation showed that she recommended the hiring of five contractual employees and approved accomplishment reports of the same employees as well as their daily time records when in fact they had not rendered any service to the government.
The Ombudsman discovered that Doral was preparing for the bar examinations while Sergio and Derrick were full time students of the University of Mindanao at the time of their supposed employment.
The Ombudsman also noted that the daily time records submitted by the concerned employees were not individually prepared as evidenced by the similar handwriting.
Blank spaces for the date of certification were also not filled up when in the ordinary course of official business every employee submitting his or her daily time record would always indicate the date.
Petitioner Rosie Toroba Bajenting accused the board member and her mother of hiring ghost employees and collecting their salaries to the detriment of the government.
She claimed that board member was actually the one receiving the salaries of the ghost employees in the amount of P5,500 per month starting 2001.
Bajenting added that she was even instructed to deposit the salaries in Maria Consuelo's savings account at the Philippine National Bank-Mati branch.
Aside from the five employees, Bajenting claimed Maria Consuelo employed more ghost employees thereafter.
In January 2003, the ghost employees were reportedly transferred to the Office of the Governor.
The Ombudsman said Maria Consuelo's "silence and failure to specifically deny Bajenting's allegation that she got the salaries of the ghost employees is detrimental to her cause."
The Ombudsman, however, did not find sufficient cause for the filing of the same charges against the governor.
Ombudsman also recommended further preliminary investigations against the five ghost employees "for them to be charged as co-conspirators of board member Palma Gil." (BOT)
For Bisaya stories from Davao. Click here. (April 12, 2006 issue)
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