'There was due process,' Ombudsman director maintains on Tupas et al dismissal
Cebu City—Due process was observed in the anti-graft case that has now rocked the Iloilo Provincial Government. And the penalty of dismissal from service with cancellation of benefits and perpetual disqualification from government service was just and appropriate.
Such were the sentiments of Director Virginia Palanca-Santiago, Deputy Director for the Office of the Ombudsman in the Visayas amid questions raised and criticisms hurled on the anti-graft body relative to the dismissal of Governor Niel Tupas and Board Members Cecilia Capadosa (Second District) and Domingo Oso (Fourth District).
"Due process" that was heeded by the trio when counter-affidavits were submitted before the investigating panel and same "due process" that finally got the Ombudsman probers to resolve the case back in December.
"They had that – due process in their sworn statements. Now as for the clarificatory hearings, that is not mandatory. It is up to the graft investigators to decide whether they need to call for a hearing or consider the evidence as presented in the affidavits. It is not right to say that there was no due process here," she told The News Today (TNT).
Yet how about the penalty of dismissal for Tupas, Capadosa and Oso particularly since the questioned transaction involved only P20,000 and P65,000?
"They were found guilty of dishonesty and falsification of public documents. As far as these charges are concerned and we are backed with the Civil Service Rules on these, the penalty of dismissal is just. It does not matter whether you took a small amount or not. It is still dishonesty and dismissal is the penalty," she said.