Former Makati City mayor Romulo Peña Jr. and eight others were slapped with graft and falsification charges before the Office of the Ombudsman about the alleged ghost delivery of sports items and supplies intended for the city government’s summer sports program.
In an 18-page complaint filed on March 6, Marilyn King, head of the city’s Youth and Sports Development Department, said Peña and the other respondents violated Republic Act 3019, or the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act, and Falsification by a Public Officer under Article 171 of the Revised Penal Code.
Also charged were Ernesto Marcos D.P. Lopez, former officer in charge of YSDD; Amalia C. Santos, former OIC of the City Treasurer’s Office; Carmina P. Lazaro, inspection officer, Supply and Property Management Division, General Services Department; Helena L. Cejalvo, inspection officer, GSD; Ramila C. Cruzado, OIC, GSD; Sonia I. Suarez, chief, Supply and Property Management Division, GSD; Fe V. Villasin, Recreation and Welfare Services Officer, YSDD; and John C. Co, president of PMPI Creative Suites.
The group “with manifest partiality and evident bad faith, caused the full payment of the purchase price of P823,195.31 even though there was no complete delivery of the purchased goods,” King said. Their actions caused undue injury to the city government, her complaint stated.
Peña served as acting mayor more than a year after Jejomar Erwin Binay Jr. was dismissed from the service as mayor of Makati for his involvement in the alleged overpriced City Hall Building II.
In the 2016 elections, Peña ran for mayor, but was defeated by Binay’s sister Abigail.
King said an inventory conducted upon her assumption as YSDD head showed the supplier failed to deliver all the sports items and supplies listed in the duly signed purchase request and purchase order, despite full payment.
The items were intended for the city government’s yearly Sports, Music, Arts and Recreational Training program.
Certifications, in the form of Inspector’s Report and Acceptance and Inspection Report, have also been issued by the respondents, stating all the items have been delivered.
The nondelivery of the items was further confirmed by an affidavit executed by Gertrudis Ramirez, operations officer of YSDD, who said there was “a discrepancy between the items indicated in the Purchase Request and the items actually delivered.”
The supplier and lone bidder for the project, PMPI Creative Suites, also confirmed they have not delivered all the items, King said.
“Considering, however, that the City Government of Makati has already paid the full amount, the fact that not all the items in Purchase Request No. 16-05-0409 have been delivered caused damage and prejudice to the city government of Makati, for which respondents should be held criminally liable,” the complaint said.
“Likewise, the respondents should also be held criminally liable for Falsification by a Public Officer for issuing false certifications that all the items… have been delivered, when in truth and in fact they were not,” it added.
The complaint said Peña should be charged since as acting mayor, he signed the documents required in purchasing the items and for the supplier’s payment.
As OIC of the YSDD under Peña, Lopez certified all the items have been delivered “despite knowing fully well that the deliveries were not yet complete.”
Lazaro, Cejalvo, Cruzado and Suarez of the GSD all certified to the full delivery of the purchased items, while Villasin, as an officer of YSDD, certified receiving all the items in good condition.
Co, the private respondent, “conspired with and aided the respondent public officers as he demanded and accepted full payment of the purchase price despite knowing fully well that PMPI has not made a complete delivery of the purchased items,” the complaint added.
Among the items included in the purchase request were basketballs, arnis sticks, shuttlecocks, volleyballs, table tennis balls, plaques, medals tarpaulins, posters and ID cards.
City government officials earlier asked the Commission on Election to file a case against Pena, also for violating the election ban on appointments, promotions and transfers of personnel.
In a letter to Comelec Law Department head Norina Tangaro-Casingal, the city government said the personnel movements made by Peña were done without prior authority from the poll body.
“Thus, we are of the firm opinion that Peña’s actions constitute Election Offense under Article XXII, Section 261, par.(h) of the Omnibus Election Code,” lawyer Michael Arthur Camiña, head of the Makati Legal Department, said.
“Accordingly, we request your assistance on the matter, and trust that you will file the necessary actions to sanction Peña’s disregard of the law,” he added.
The letter, dated February 15, was received by the Comelec last February 22.
Camiña said during his short stint as acting mayor, Peña appointed, promoted and transferred city government personnel but most of these have been invalidated by the Civil Service Commission, as they were made during the election period.
He also pointed out the Notices of Disallowance issued by the CSC affirm the lack of prior authority from the Comelec on personnel movement made by Peña during the election period.
Pena said the complaints hurled by the city government are the same old issues that he already clarified.
He said the Personnel Selection Board of the city government had acted in good faith thru proper screening and deliberation of promoted and regularized personnel.
“All OICs and department heads appeared before the PSB to defend their recommendations which include traffic aides and street sweepers, whose been in the city government’s roster for 25 years as casual employees,” Pena said.
Pena added “It is only during the regime of Bagong Makati, when they were given regular plantilla positions. Hiring of personnel at the law department and Makati DRRMO as I remember, was granted exemption from the Comelec ban.”
He also said allegations of ghost employees were also cleared when displaced personnel lined up last December in getting their 13th month pay and other privileges.