Ombudsman Jesus Crispin Remulla on Thursday, Oct. 23, said he will implement the 2016 dismissal order against then congressman and now Senator Joel Villanueva for the alleged misuse of P10 million in Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF).
In an interview with ANC, Remulla said that he would formally request Senate President Vicente “Tito” Sotto III to immediately enforce that order.
“We will try to enforce it now. We will write a letter to the Senate President, and ask him now to enforce that order. Because that is the way it works,” he said.
He added: “What is the meaning of this office if people will just ignore the orders of this office?”
To recall, the dismissal order was issued by former Ombudsman Conchita Carpio-Morales in 2016 after Villanueva was found administratively guilty of Grave Misconduct, Serious Dishonesty, and Conduct Prejudicial to the Best Interest of the Service.
Villanueva’s PDAF was released to National Agri-Business Corporation (Nabcor) in 2008 to implement “agri-based livelihood projects in the various congressional districts in Region XI,” with Aaron Foundation Philippines Incorporated (AFPI) as the implementing non-government organization.
In securing seedlings, fertilizers, and threshers for the farmers, Ombudsman investigators discovered that the municipalities selected were not suitable for farming and there were ghost beneficiaries.
However, nothing came out of Morales’ order of dismissal.
Thus, Remulla said he is also planning to consult with the judiciary on dismissal and suspension orders for members of the House and the Senate, aside from seeking help from the current Senate President.
He said: “I think that is one of the things that the Supreme Court (SC) will have to decide eventually. What is the real power of the Ombudsman to dismiss people who fall under the House and under the Senate? Does the Senate have leadership, an obligation to listen and enforce the orders of the Ombudsman within its system? Because that is the issue here.”
Should history repeat itself and Villanueva will not be dismissed, Remulla said: “We will go to the Supreme Court.”
“So, if they refuse to do it or it’s not enforced, then we will ask the courts about how the hell do we enforce an order from the Ombudsman when it’s final and executory,” he said.
“Or even when it’s not final and executory, but because it contains a grave offense, you’re found guilty of a grave offense, I think that it’s our duty to enforce it,” he also said. (Czarina Ong Ki)
