Thursday, September 27, 2007 Ombud looks into use of gov’t car for motel tryst By Jay Dooma Balnig
THE office of the Ombudsman in the Visayas will look into the illegal use of a government vehicle identified to be assigned to the Capiz Provincial Government.
Director Virginia Palanca-Santiago said her office is now investigating the alleged illegal use of a government vehicle under the "Red Plate" campaign, an operation against government vehicles used for personal business or illegally.
The Land Transportation Office (LTO) recently proved that the Blue green Isuzu Trooper with plate number SHT 865, which was spotted inside The Q Motel in La Paz, Iloilo City last Sunday, was licensed under the Capiz Provincial Government.
In a radio interview, Capiz Provincial Board Member Fritz Cruz-Am admitted the said government vehicle was issued to his office by the Provincial Government of Capiz.
He said he earlier directed his driver to fetch him from Iloilo City and bring him to the Provincial Board Members League meeting in Bacolod City slated September 21-23.
On the allegation that a girl was seen riding on the vehicle during the time the car checked in at around 3:00 p.m. last September 23 in the lodge located along Jereos, La Paz, the young legislator said: "Only my driver can answer that."
Aksyon Radyo-Iloilo reporters monitored the actual check-out of the vehicle from the lodging house at around 11:00 pm of the same date.
Television station crewmembers, who were also monitoring the incident, even tried to chase the vehicle to see who are inside but failed because the driver sped away in the direction of Leganes.
