Just in from Ombuds Media Center: Ombudsman sacks DA regional officials for misconduct Ombudsman Conchita Carpio Morales ordered the dismissal from the service of two officials from the Department of Agriculture Regional Field Unit III (DA-RFU III) and an instructor from the Bulacan Agricultural State College (BASC) for misappropriating public funds and falsifying official documents in connection with the liquidation of the Ginintuang Masaganang Ani High Value Commercial Crops Program (GMA-HVCC). In a twenty four-page Decision, Ombudsman Conchita Carpio Morales found DA-RFU III Project Coordinator Ponciano Vinuya and BASC Instructor Julita Ponce guilty of Grave Misconduct and Serious Dishonesty, while DA-RFU III Cashier Elena Miranda was found guilty of Serious Dishonesty. The Decision narrated that in November 2001, the Philippine Coconut Authority transferred P4.9 million of GMA-HVCC funds to the DA-RFU III for its project implementation. DA-RFU III then engaged the services of the Philippine Agriculture and Resources Research Foundation Inc. (PARRFI) as NGO-partner to conduct an impact assessment for the GMA-HVCC program at the cost of P3 million. In the Special Audit Report submitted by the Commission on Audit (COA), it was determined that the official receipt, vouchers and other supporting documents used in the liquidation were falsified, as the actual amount paid to PARRFI was only P150,000.00 and not P750,000.00 as claimed by Miranda. COA verification showed that no trainings were conducted in the school, plus the alleged attendance sheets do not indicate the trainings and dates. Meals obtained were also considered as overpriced with Ponce signing the official receipt in behalf of Dang’s Catering Services. The COA also reported that liquidation vouchers and supporting documents for Miranda’s cash advances totaling P847,765 were all falsified by Vinuya. Cicero Garcia, proprietor of Manyaman Keni Restaurant, also denied having transacted with DA-RFU III in August 2002. The Bureau of Internal Revenue also certified that the restaurant did not reflect the alleged transaction as part of their sales. In the Decision, Ombudsman Morales said that “misappropriating public funds clearly constitutes Misconduct. In respondent Vinuya’s case, the misconduct was grave because he willfully stole public funds” and “committed Dishonesty when he falsified official receipts and financial reports in an attempt to conceal the misappropriation.” Aside from dismissal from the service, Vinuya, Ponce and Miranda were meted out the accessory penalties of forfeiture of retirement benefits, perpetual disqualification from holding public office, cancellation of civil service eligibility, and bar from taking the civil service examination. Meanwhile, the charges against former DA RFU III Regional Director Pepito De Dote were dismissed on account of his death in 2009 while the case against Accountant Narcisa Maningding was dismissed for lack of substantial evidence. ###
Posted on: Mon, 13 Oct 2014 03:00:02 +0000
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