Damaso Tumulak, (center), Dana Jane Escalante (left), and Engineer Andres Suson discuss during a press the order of the Ombudsman to Mandaue City Mayor Gabriel Luis Quisumbing to submit a counter affidavit on the complaint filed by Tumulak and three others against the mayor./Photo by Futch Anthony Inso
CEBU CITY, Philippines — The Office of the Ombudsman Visayas has ordered Mandaue City Mayor Gabriel Luis “Luigi” Quisumbing to submit a counter affidavit for the administrative and criminal cases filed by four City Hall employees against him.
The Ombudsman was referring to the complaint filed against Quisumbing for violation of Republic Act no. 3019 or the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act, Grave Misconduct and Oppression.
Damaso Tumulak, who is a Law graduate, Engineer Andres Suson, Frolentino dela Paz Jr. and Danna Jane Escalante filed the complaint last Nov. 12, 2018.
The Ombudsman’s order was dated December 17, 2018 but it was only received this week by Mayor Quisumbing’s camp.
“We have received the order, and we will file it today (January 24),” said Lawyer Elaine Bathan, executive secretary of the Mandaue City Mayor, in a phone interview on Thursday, January 24.
Tumulak, one of the complainants, said in a press briefing that the complaint stemmed from his reassignment and three others to the Umapad dumpsite.
Tumulak was human resources head of the Mandaue City government, Suson was an assistant to the City Engineering Office, Dela Paz was assistant commissioner of the City Sports Commission, and Escalante was an administration aide.
The four of them were transferred to the Umapad Dumpsite Task Force with Tumulak heading it, Suson its assistant and the other two employees as members.
The task force was created by Quisumbing through an administrative order last May 31, 2018.
He said they questioned their transfer to the task force because they had no expertise on the matter of no build zones.
Tumulak said that he already filed a complaint against the mayor before the Civil Service Commission (CSC)-7.
CSC-7 has already issued a reinstatement order for Tumulak and Suson, but the mayor has not implemented the order.
Aside from this, the complainants also claimed that they had not received their salary from June until October last year.
Based on the joint order of Ombudsman, they found enough basis to proceed with the preliminary investigation and administrative adjudication proceedings of these criminal cases and administrative cases.
Mandaue City Mayor Gabriel Luis “Luigi” Quisumbing. CDN File photo
When sought for comment, Quisumbing, through the city’s public information office, said that these employees were transferred to the Mandaue landfill in Umapad, following the JICA study on the no build zone.
He also said that they also complied in the releasing the salaries of the complainants and that the matter was already closed by the Ombudsman.
For him, he said that the case had clearly shown bad faith, harassment and politicking.
When sought for comment, Tumulak confirmed that they had already received their salaries but they had not yet been paid their allowances./dbs