Thursday, April 06, 2006
Finance chief freezes customs bureau reshuffle
CEBU CITY -- Her boss at the Department of Finance (DOF) is letting Ma. Lourdes Mangaoang stay as the Cebu Port customs collector, even as a local official questioned "lobbying by non-Cebuano politicians" to replace her.
Finance Secretary Margarito Teves told the Bureau of Customs (BOC) Wednesday to put off the implementation of two orders that reassigned 20 district collectors nationwide.
In his order dated April 4, Teves said the bureau needed to review the reassignments "with the end in view of maximizing collection of customs revenues."
He addressed the memo to Acting Commissioner Napoleon Morales, who is on an official trip in Beijing, and officer-in-charge Alexander Arevalo.
Cebu City Mayor Tomas Osmeña welcomed Teves' decision and admitted he "put in a good word" for Mangaoang -- not because he is protecting the lawyer but because he doesn't like the idea of politicians meddling at the BOC.
"It's not so much about her. It's just that I don't like the idea of lobbying by people who are not from Cebu who endorse someone to come here. There are politicians who are not from here but seem to want to take control of the BOC, and I will not accept that," Osmeña said.
Court case
Gracia Zuño Caringal, the licensed pharmacist who was supposed to replace Mangaoang as head of the customs' Cebu Port office, did not proceed because of Mangaoang's refusal to vacate her post, said Caringal's spokesman, Cerwin Eviota.
Caringal has hired a public relations group headed by Eviota, as well as lawyer Jeremias Mapula, to answer a petition filed at the Court Appeals (CA) to stop the transfers.
The CA gave the respondents Caringal, Morales and Bernardo Sales, acting deputy commissioner of the Internal Administration Group, 10 days to comment on the petition.
The appeals court also issued a temporary restraining order (TRO) shortly after Mangaoang filed her petition to annul the transfer orders.
But Mapula said they are confident the TRO will be lifted, because Mangaoang went to the CA only last April 4. That was the day after Caringal received a certificate of assumption as district collector of the Port of Cebu, signed by Sales.
Meddling
"This is to certify that Collector Gracia Z. Caringal has assumed the duties and responsibilities as acting district collector of the Port of Cebu," Sales said in the certificate.
At City Hall, Mayor Osmeña told a news conference Wednesday his position on the matter is not "personal."
"I don't know Lourdes Mangaoang but I don't like the idea of people meddling in Cebu. I get scared," he added.
The mayor admitted several businessmen asked him to do something to keep Mangaoang in Cebu, but he also got requests from other groups to help in the appointment of Caringal.
"I told Secretary Teves that whatever it is, I don't want to make it appear that I'm trying to protect Lourdes but I also won't accept Caringal. I don't know her (Caringal), but I know that some people are trying to put her here," Osmeña said.
Blue Angel
Aside from the mayor, Representative Antonio Cuenco (Cebu City, south), Rep. Raul del Mar (Cebu City, north) and Representative Nerissa Soon-Ruiz (Cebu, 6th district) also wrote President Arroyo to ask her to reconsider Mangaoang's transfer.
As a result of Teves' memorandum, Arevalo ordered all affected customs collectors to report back to their port assignments before the transfer orders were issued.
Caringal will go back as deputy district collector for assessment of the Ninoy Aquino International Airport.
Also Wednesday, Eviota also denied that he is "Blue Angel", the alias of a person who has sent e-mail to various media outlets to malign Mangaoang. (Mangaoang has referred the matter to the National Bureau of Investigation.)
"I categorically deny that I am Blue Angel. I was just hired by Tita Gracia (Caringal) yesterday (April 4)," Eviota said.
Mangaoang has complained that her critics have "resorted to attacks below the belt, because I did not do anything wrong in public service." (EOB/With LCR of Sun.Star Cebu)
(April 6, 2006 issue)
Write letter to the editor. Click here.
Join the Sun.Star message board. Click here. |
Soldier tagged in coup plot nabbed