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Saturday, March 08, 2003
Councilor gets girl pregnant, punished
By Giovanni A. Nilles
CEBU -- For having sex with his girlfriend and later impregnating her, Madridejos Councilor Neil Mulle was suspended by the Office of the Deputy Ombudsman-Visayas for six months without pay.
Mulle, son of a former Madridejos vice mayor, was charged by Maricel Cajes with immoral conduct prior to entering government service, an offense punishable under the Uniform Rules on Administrative Cases in the Civil Service.
Mulle was single and a private citizen at the time he allegedly committed the offense cited in the complaint.
In the complaint, the woman said she and the councilor were close even before the 2001 elections. A promise of marriage eventually led her to have sex with the young local lawmaker.
But after she got pregnant, Mulle reportedly began avoiding her and even refused to give her the necessary support for pregnancy, delivery and subsequent child support.
Consensual sex
In his answer to Graft Investigator Helen Catacutan-Acas, Mulle confirmed having sexual relations with the woman but stressed it was an act between two consenting adults, "nothing more, nothing less."
"I deny that I promised her marriage...but a promise of marriage is not a guarantee of a woman who is of reason to submit herself to the desire of a man," the decision quoted Mulle's affidavit.
Mulle also claimed he has never abused his authority nor used this in a scandalous way, having observed moral values.
He said he broke up with the woman after she incessantly asked for financial assistance. This separation, he said, happened about a year before the woman got pregnant.
"I have no intention to ruin the morality of any woman but (her) actuation is something to think twice (about) as marriage is a lifetime affair...sad to say, I am not ready to face the altar of matrimony," Mulle's statement read.
Political
The councilor also reportedly claimed that the complaint may just be politically motivated, citing the intense rivalry between former mayor Doroteo Salazar and incumbent Mayor Lety Mancio, his partymate.
In assessing the evidence, Acas ruled against Mulle, citing his admission of having sexual relations with the complainant and the admission of continuing sexual encounters even after he was elected into office.
"Being a public servant, (Mulle) should refrain at all times from doing acts contrary to good morals and good customs. By engaging in carnal relations with the complainant, he fell short of the standard of morality required of him as a public servant. The contributory fault of the complainant, which resulted to her pregnancy, cannot exculpate Mr. Mulle from the charge," the anti-graft ruling read.
The findings were approved by Deputy Ombudsman Primo Miro after a recommendation from Director Virginia Palanca-Santiago. (Sun.Star Cebu)
(March 8, 2003 issue)
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