MALACAÑANG DISMISSED the Bicol director of the Bureau of Local
Government and Finance (BLGF) for violating the Anti-graft and Corrupt
Practices Act (Republic Act 3019).
A resolution from the office of the president signed by Manuel Gaite
said that "as recommended by the Presidential Anti-Graft Commission
(PAGC), Veronica Bombase King is hereby dismissed from the service
with forfeiture of all financial benefits and disqualification from
government service."
Gaite signed the resolution last May 29, 2003.
PAGC based its recommendation from the results of its investigation
on the complaint presented to PAGC chairman Last August 24 2001, by
Allen Aga and 5 other Bicol regional BLGF employees.
On the same day that the six employees gave their complaint to PAGC,
they were joined by five other Legaspi BLGF employees in petitioning
president Gloria Arroyo to immediately remove "King for grave abuse
of authority, oppression, conduct unbecoming of a government employee,
grave misconduct, gross neglect of duty, mismanagement in the office,
and other irregularities." They claimed that the director caused the
demoralization and inefficiencies of employees in the region because
the regional director has no respect for the employees.
At that time there were only twenty employees at BLGF office in Legaspi
city and eleven were in clash with the director.
King in her letter to Benjamin Geronimo, Executive Director of the
BLGF, last October 5, 2001 countered that the petition is "malicious
and derogatory."
In that petition, including the amended one, Aga's group specifically
accused King to have falsified official certifications; made unlawful
disposition of government properties particularly the one refrigerator,
two water-dispenser, and one wall clock financed by the BLGF but was
used by her privately.
Aga's group were puzzled that under King's administration, municipal
treasurer with pending cases get promoted or appointed to a full-pledged
higher position. Regional Special Office Orders for the assignment
or designation of municipal treasurer were not submitted to BLGF in
Manila for confirmation before they were implemented.
The employees were also complaining that their director was holding
office in her house in Naga City or in her apartment in Legaspi City.
They were also able to convince PAGC that King was inefficient in
the management of the finances of their office. A sample case presented
by the employees is the disconnection of the telephone due to the
non payment of its bills. The said telephone was used for personal
calls.
PAGC finished its investigation and gave its recommendation to Malacañang
last May 9, 2002. It took Malacañang more than a year to decide on
the matter.
It was a painstaking struggle for the group of Allen Aga. Their complaint
made a schism between officemates. Most of the time, they don't know
whom to trust and tell their story. It was Atty. Absalom Hukom who
assisted them and kept their hope of getting justice alive.
Their struggle also drained their financial resources. Often, they
have to pay for their own expenses in going to Manila, in doing research
work, and in texting to ask friends for support. Their private lives
and families were seriously affected. They were on their own and always
worried at the risk of losing the case. How they wished that there
is a group that could help them.
Counter Charges
King tried to parry the accusations of Aga's group. She had her own
counter-charges.
At the preliminary conference and marking of evidences against the
regional director at PAGC last February 11, 2002, King, through a
letter, asked PAGC to dismiss the case. She was accusing the employees
of "forum shopping."
After the BLGF employees gave their petition to president Arroyo,
King filed a total of 24 counter-charges against the eleven employees.
She filed them at the ombudsman, civil service commission, and at
the local courts. In addition, the director also filed a libel case
against the complaining employees at the Naga City prosecution office.
Last October 18, 2001 King filed a complaint against two of her accusers,
Allen Aga and Glenn Sendon at the Ombudsman. Three criminal and three
administrative cases were filed against Sendon; Aga was charged with
a criminal and one administrative case.
King also filed different administrative cases against nine of her
accusers at the Civil Service Commission in Legaspi City Last November
2001.
The conflict was causing demoralization and affecting the performance
of the BLGF office in Legaspi City. In a letter to Secretary Isidro
Camacho, Department of Finance (DOF), last October 15, 2001 the employees
said that, "Our office is extremely demoralized due to Atty. King's
retaliation in the form of threat and filing of numerous, baseless,
criminal, and administrative cases" against the complaining employees.
In addition, they reiterated to Geronimo that, "the Regional Director
resorted to desperately finding ways to get back at all those who
signed and supported the petition."
For her side, King wrote Geronimo last October 5, 2001, saying that,
"despite the barrage of libelous imputations directed against me in
all media of communications, I decided to file a case against them
to bring the matter to the proper forum."
Affected World Bank Project.
It was not only Aga's group who were complaining. There were two regional
directors of government line agencies in Legaspi City who were not
happy with the performance of King at the BLGF.
In July of 2000, Director Marlene Rodriguez of the National Economic
and Development Authority (NEDA), Bicol pulled out of the Bicol Community
Based Resource Management Project (CBRMP), a World Bank Funded project,
because of the behavior of King.
Rodriguez, in a memorandum, announced that she was pulling out of
the project due to King's "absence of professionalism, lack of interest
in the discussion of the project being presented by the proponent
often leaving the room during presentation, and lack of respect to
the members of the RTRC."
King as the director of BLGF was the chairman of the CBRMP's Regional
Technical Review Committee (RTRC). The CBRMP was being managed by
the DOF and the project's RTRC is composed of regional directors of
different government line agencies.
After Rodriguez's decision to pull out from the CBRMP, director Catalina
Orindain of the Department of Budget and Management (DBM), Bicol wrote
Usec. Lily Gruba of the DOF. She said that, "the RTRC were saddened
when Marlene Rodriguez pulled out from the committee by reason of
unprofessional actuation by the chairman, the chairman was grandstanding
in the presence of CBRMP clients at the extent of other members, she
welcomes the suggestion to replace the chairman of the RTRC."
That conflict at the CBRMP was one of the main reasons that the Local
Government Unit in Caramoan, Camarines Sur was not able to avail of
about PhP16 million worth of project from the CBRMP.
King may have been dismissed by Malacañang but some say that she
will make an appeal for Malacañang to revoke its decision. This could
mean an extension of Aga's group struggle but the group is more than
ready. After all, they were strengthened by two years of painstaking
legal battles.
If there will be another battle for the BLGF employees in Legaspi
City--and other government employees for that matter--the least that
the government can do is pay for their expenses in going to Manila,
in doing research work, and in getting legal services. It could also
be of great help if Malacañang can decide on a complaint in less than
a year. They have to understand that delays in legal battles are emotionally
and financially draining. (Kaiba
News and Features)
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