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Tuesday, January 16, 2007
12 local officials ordered dismissed from posts
MANILA -- Local Government Secretary Ronaldo Puno on Monday ordered the implementation of dismissal orders against Iloilo Governor Niel Tupas Sr., Pasay City Mayor Wenceslao Trinidad, and 10 other local government officials.
The 10 other officials ordered dismissed from their posts by the Office of the Ombudsman are Mayor Antonio Esquivel of Jaen, Nueva Ecija; Pasay City Vice Mayor Antonio Calixto; and Pasay City Councilors Richard Advincula, Dexter Ibay, Jose Antonio Roxas, Arnel Regino Arceo, Editha Vergel de Dios, Marie Irish Pineda, and Greg Paolo Alcera.
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The dismissal orders were in connection with the graft and corruption and administrative charges filed against the local officials, according to Puno in a press conference Monday at the Department of Interior and Local Government central office in Quezon City.
The dismissal of Tupas came after the Ombudsman found him "administratively liable for illegally releasing public funds for a seminar that never took place."
Trinidad and the Pasay officials were ordered dismissed for alleged grave misconduct after the Ombudsman found them administratively liable for circumventing the laws on public bidding in the awarding of service contracts for garbage collection and disposal in their city.
On the other hand, Esquivel was ordered dismissed for allegedly violating the Civil Service Commission (CSC) rules and regulations for dismissing civil service eligible members of his town's local water district.
Puno asked the officials to leave their posts and appealed to them to respect the decision of the Ombudsman, which also prevents them from seeking any elective post in the upcoming national and local May elections.
He also clarified that his order enforcing the Ombudsman's dismissal resolutions does not involve politics.
The election period officially began on Monday following the start of the filing of the candidacy and enforcement of the election gun ban.
"Let me make it clear that the DILG is merely the implementer of these dismissal orders, which did not originate from our department but from the Office of the Ombudsman. We are merely following the Ombudsman's orders," said Puno.
Puno ordered the 12 officials to follow the example of Cavite Governor Erineo Maliksi, who accepted last week his six-month suspension by the Ombudsman in connection with an administrative case lodged against him.
Puno said the DILG is mandated to enforce orders from independent and constitutional bodies; otherwise, he and other DILG officials might be held liable for dereliction of their mandated duties and responsibilities.
The Ombudsman holds disciplinary authority over all elective and appointive officials, except members of Congress, the judiciary, and impeachable officials. It can conduct administrative investigations against officials and impose sanctions against them.
On whether suspended officials are barred from running in the May elections, Puno said his department is clarifying this with the Department of Justice (DOJ).
Puno said the DILG received an order from the Ombudsman last Friday suspending for six months Batangas Governor Armando Sanchez. His suspension started last January 14.
Last week, the DILG also suspended for six months Mamburao, Occidental Mindoro Mayor Joel Panaligan; Aguilar, Pangasinan Mayor Ricardo Evangelista; and Vallehermoso, Negros Occidental Mayor Joniper Villegas also on orders of the Ombudsman.
Panaligan is facing charges for allegedly falsifying the payroll of casual employees of the Municipal Council while Evangelista has been accused of alleged unauthorized use of the Special Education Fund allotted for his municipality.
On the other hand, Villegas was found guilty of misconduct by the Ombudsman for illegally dismissing municipal employees.
In Pasay City, tension marred the first working day of the election period in the city as Trinidad's supporters trooped to City Hall following reports that the DILG is set to dismiss him from his post.
Trinidad, Calixto and the other dismissed city official joined their supporters massing in front of the City Hall, prompting the authorities to tighten security to prevent a clash with supporters of the opposing camp.
Trinidad asked the DILG to "immediately order the temporary appointees" led by acting mayor Alan Panaligan to vacate their respective offices and reinstate the dismissed officials to their post.
In a letter to Puno, the officials said the decision of the Office of the Ombudsman dated January 12, 2007 ordering the dismissal of Trinidad and the other officials is not yet final and executory.
Former senator and human rights lawyer Rene Saguisag, who is helping Trinidad's legal team, likewise said that by reason of the onset of the election period on Monday, the suspension already constitutes a prohibited act and by operation of law likewise automatically lifted.
But Local Government Undersecretary Wencelito Andanar said there was no impediment to the dismissal of Trinidad, Tupas, and Esquivel since the election ban covers only the suspension of officials and not dismissal.
"All I can say is that all the suspension orders, except for Batangas governor Armand Sanchez, for the mayors of Aguilar Pangasinan, Mamburao and Villahermosa in Mindoro are enforced since Saturday. What we have left today is the dismissal order," Andanar said.
He denied that the administration is targeting opposition politicians, adding that the DILG is only implementing the order of the Ombudsman.
Trinidad belongs to the Partido ng Masang Pilipino (PMP), the political party of former President Joseph Estrada, although he is not as vocal as Makati Mayor Jejomar Binay in lambasting the administration.
Binay was also suspended last year but was able to secure a temporary restraining order from the Court of Appeals (CA).
But it was the timing of the dismissal order that Saguisag is questioning, calling it as a "midnight suspension" and done in haste to apparently beat the election ban.
"Even they don't believe what they're saying that it has nothing to do with politics. Why the haste?" asked the lawyer in apparent reference to the political rivals of the suspended official.
He added that they will file a motion for reconsideration not later than January 17.
He also chided what he said is the "harshness" of the decision as he claimed that the respondents were not given the chance to cross-examine the accuser.
Pasay City Hall resembled on Monday a fortress with the front door barricaded while some 150 anti-riot cops from the Southern Police District and the local police secured the area.
Trinidad blamed the camp of Pasay Representative Consolacion Dy for Pasay City's predicament. Dy is reportedly eyeing for the mayoral post in the May elections with Panaligan as his running mate.
At the House of Representatives, some members of the opposition questioned the Ombudsman's resolution dismissing from office the local government officials. "Is this the price of a resolution issued by the Ombudsman recommending the filing of graft, extortion and falsification of documents against former secretary Hernando Perez? Somehow, we could not discount that," said House Minority Leader Francis Escudero said.
Escudero also said the dismissal of Tupas, Trinidad, and 10 other local officials could have been a midnight deal, which was both "suspicious and questionable."
Tupas is a known supporter of opposition Senator Franklin Drilon.
He said the dismissal is like a message that Malacañang would want to send to local government officials who have been thinking of not supporting her senatorial ticket in the May 14 elections.
Malacañang, however, said the suspension of local government executives was not limited to members of the opposition or those who are critical of the administration.
Executive Secretary Eduardo Ermita said there are local government officials who are known administration allies that have been suspended like Governors Sanchez and Maliksi.
Sanchez is from the Lakas Christian Muslim Democrats (CMD) while Maliksi is from the Liberal Party (LP)-Atienza faction.
Commission on Elections Chairman Benjamin Abalos Sr. said they would have to examine first if DILG violated the Omnibus Election Code, which prohibits the suspension of local officials during the 150-day election period. (VR/AH/JMR/MSN/Sunnex)
For more Philippine news, visit Sun.Star Baguio. (January 16, 2007 issue)
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