SC reverses ombudsman suspension of Junjun

Dismissed Makati Mayor Jejomar Erwin “Junjun” Binay Jr. has won his case in the Supreme Court (SC) against the Office of the Ombudsman in relation to his earlier preventive suspension over alleged anomaly in the Makati City Hall Building 2 project.

In its decision against the suspension order on Binay, the Supreme Court (SC) allowed the application of the condonation doctrine or Aguinaldo doctrine.

The doctrine has been a common defense invoked by elected officials in evading liabilities for acts committed in their previous terms in office.

It effectively extinguishes a reelected official’s administrative liability from alleged wrongdoing during a previous term.

The SC conceived of the doctrine in an October 1959 decision.

A court insider bared that the justices decided in session to abandon the doctrine, but only for future cases.

Binay could use the latest SC ruling in questioning the Ombudsman’s subsequent dismissal order against him, the source stressed.

The SC insider further revealed that the high court also upheld the power of the Court of Appeals (CA) to review and stop administrative orders of the Office of the Ombudsman on cases against officials.

The abandonment of the doctrine would be prospective in application, as agreed upon by the majority of justices during the voting, the source said.

This means the doctrine will apply in Binay’s case but he will be the last to benefit from it.

The SC rejected the position of Ombudsman Conchita Carpio-Morales that the condonation doctrine cannot apply in Binay’s case.

Binay invoked the doctrine in questioning the preventive suspension order issued by the Ombudsman.

Last month, the Ombudsman ordered the dismissal from service of Mayor Binay over the controversy.

Binay had argued that the alleged anomalies were committed during the first and second phases of the project when he was not yet mayor of the city.

The third and fourth phases, on the other hand, were then undertaken during his previous term from 2010 to 2013.

The SC, the source said, has also rejected the position of Morales that only the high court can review and stop her orders on administrative cases based on Section 14 of Republic Act No. 6770 (Ombudsman Act).

Such provision in the Ombudsman law was declared ineffective as Congress did not consult the SC in approving it, according to the ruling penned by Associate Justice Estela Perlas-Bernabe.

No other details were available as the high court has not yet released a copy of the ruling as of press time.

The SC issued the ruling in response to a petition filed by the ombudsman questioning the orders of the CA stopping the ombudsman’s first preventive suspension order against Mayor Binay.

In her petition last March, Morales assailed the temporary restraining order (TRO) and writ of preliminary injunction (WPI) issued by the CA stopping her suspension order against Binay.

The SC heard the case in oral arguments during summer session in Baguio City last April before four justices – Presbitero Velasco Jr., Diosdado Peralta, Arturo Brion and Francis Jardeleza – decided to inhibit from the case. 

Meanwhile, the Makati City police said the large presence of policemen around the Makati City Hall is part of APEC preparations and not a reaction to the SC decision on Binay case.

“They (police officers) are being billeted at the school. It has nothing to do with the Supreme Court decision,” Sr. Supt. Ernesto Barlam, chief of the Makati City Police, said, referring to the General Pio Del Pilar National High School. The school is located near the city hall building on F. Zobel street. The Makati City Hall building is not very far from the hotels where some of the APEC delegates would be staying during the summit.

Binay spokesman Joey Salgado said they were not convinced of the city police chief’s explanation.

“That is their version of things.  But the timing is suspicious. APEC is still quite far away,” Salgado toldThe STAR.

He said the mayor will issue a statement only after getting his copy of the SC decision. – With Mike Frialde

source:  Philippine Star

Parañaque sees revenues reaching P300 B in 5 yrs from Entertainment City

MANILA, Philippines – The Paranaque City government expects revenues to reach P300 billion over a five year period when all integrated resorts have been completed in Pagcor Entertainment City.

Among these new businesses expected for completion within five years include Megaworld Corp.’s 31-hectare mixed-use township Westside City within the Philippines’ version of the Las Vegas gaming strip.

In a statement, Paranaque City Mayor Edwin Olivarez welcomed the development of several international brand hotels under Andrew Tan’s Travellers International Hotel Group Inc. which would create thousands of jobs and encourage economic activities.

The local government’s Special Services Office chief Mario Jimenez said there was a substantial increase in the number of new business registrations last year, reaching 2,325, while renewal was at 17,122 for a total of 19,447 business establishments operating in the city.

Westside City is scheduled for completion by the last quarter of 2020 and will be the home of the second Resorts World property in the Philippines after the first Resorts World in Newport City in Pasay.

Aside from Megaworld, Ayala Land Inc. will also undertake projects in Entertainment City.

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Next year alone, Olivarez expects thousands of local job seekers to be employed when the $2-billion Manila Bay Resorts of Tiger Resort Leisure and Entertainment project in Entertainment City opens in December 2016. 

Casino mogul Kazuo Okada’s Tiger Resort is committed to deliver the biggest integrated resort casino property in the country and is expected to employ over 8,000 people once fully operational next year.

Tiger Resort is envisioned to be a world-class Las Vegas style development with luxurious hotels, classy restaurants, commercial facilities, residences and state of the art pool with real sand beach covered by a glass dome.

The first to open at the Entertainment City was Solaire Resorts and Casino followed by City of Dreams Manila.

Parañaque was adjudged the country’s most competitive city in terms of economic dynamism by the National Competitiveness Council last year.

source:  Philippine Star

Local governments now allowed to privatize water, sanitation systems

LOCAL governments can now pursue public-private partnerships (PPPs) for water and sanitation projects.

The PPP Center and the World Bank recently launched the PPP knowledge toolkits for local governments, which provide standardized set of guidelines used to structure PPP projects and in going through the PPP procurement process for water and sanitation projects.

“The water and sanitation sector is a major local development area where PPPs can prove to be viable. We gratefully acknowledge the support of the World Bank’s Water and Sanitation Program, as well as the cooperation of the sector’s key institutions.

This will surely facilitate the necessary build up of PPP capacities within WDs [water districts] and local governments,” PPP Center Deputy Executive Director Eleazar E. Ricote said.

The toolkits are part of the PPP Center and World Bank-Water and Sanitation Program (WB-WSP).

The PPP toolkits presented include a guide to business case analysis; model terms of reference for water source assessment, feasibility studies and transaction advisory services; and prequalification requirements and instruction to bidders.

The toolkits also include contract management checklist; generic preferred risk-allocation matrix (GPRAM) for a water-supply project; and template bulk water agreement.

“This is consistent with the center’s holistic PPP Program approach covering project development and structuring along with PPP capacity building, as well as policy and process enhancements,” Ricote said.

The development of the toolkits and its launching are aligned with the memorandum of understanding jointly initiated by the PPP Center and WB-WSP in September, enjoining the Local Water Utilities Authority, National Water Resource Board, Philippine Association of Water Districts, and Department of the Interior and Local Government, to harmonize and reconcile their respective interventions to local governments and WDs in the pursuit of PPPs.

Currently, the PPP Center provides technical assistance to the local government of Baggao, Cagayan, in the competitive PPP bidding of its P84-million water-supply project.

At the national level, the PPP pipeline includes the P24.4-billion Bulacan Bulk Water Supply Project and the P18.72-billion New Centennial Water Source-Kaliwa Dam Project, that are both under procurement stage.

source:  Business Mirror

Ombudsman orders dismissal of 3 Mindanao mayors

Among those ordered dismissed is re-electionist Cagayan de Oro Mayor Oscar Moreno

CHARGES VS LOCAL EXECS. Ombudsman Conchita Carpio-Morales has ordered the dismissal from service of local officials in Mindanao for various offenses. File photo by Raffy Taboy

DAVAO CITY, Philippines – The Office of the Ombudsman announced on Thursday, November 5, that it has ordered the dismissal from service of 3 mayors and 27 other local officials from all over Mindanao for various offenses in the performance of their functions.

The Ombudsman anounced the dismissal from service of Cagayan de Oro Mayor Oscar Moreno; Mayor Vicente Fernandez of Matanao, Davao del Sur; and Mayor Ali Untao Adiong of Ditsa-an Ramain, Lanao del Sur.

They are also perpetually barred from holding public office.

Moreno, who is seeking re-election in 2016, was found liable for grave misconduct for entering into a settlement agreement with Ajinomoto Philippines without prior authorization from theSangguniang Panlungsod (Provincial Council). This is in violation of Republic Act 7160 or the Local Government Code, the Ombudsman said.

The agreement allowed Ajinomoto to pay just P300,000 ($6,397), instead of its original local business tax deficiency of P2.9 million ($61,840), the Ombudsman said. Glenn Bañez, officer-in-charge of the Treasurer’s Office, was also dismissed.

Fernandez, who is facing criminal charges for the murder of a journalist, was found to have been discharging functions while in detention, including issuing office orders, business permits and appointments, and signing official documents.

He was ordered dismissed from the service for grave misconduct, and also criminally indicted for usurpation of official functions under the Revised Penal Code.

Adiong was found guilty of grave abuse of authority, grave misconduct, and oppression for allegedly ordering the burning of a truck owned by a private company JERA General Construction.

Criminal charges vs Mindanao execs

The Ombudsman also said that 3 other mayors, 4 vice mayors, and 30 other local officials in Mindanao had been criminally indicted last month for various charges including malversation, failure to liquidate cash advances, and irregularities in the procurement process.

The Ombudsman said that former CDO mayor Vicente Emano, Tandag City Mayor Alexander Pimentel, and Mayor Diosdado Pallasigue of Isulan, Sultan Kudarat, have been criminally indicted.

It found probable cause to indict Emano for his willful refusal to implement a final and executory decision of the Civil Service Commission to Leonor Esparcia to her original position as administrative aide III at the JR Borja General Hospital.

Pimentel was charged with violation of Section 3(e) of Republic Act 3019 or the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act. His case stemmed from his his refusal to pay Provincial Council member Mario Cuartero a total of P485,369.24 ($10,349) in salaries and allowances from July 2010 to June 2011.

Pallasigue faces charges for refusing to implement a return to work order issued by the CSC in favor of Municipal Planning and Development Coordinator Elias Segura, Jr, in March 2014 .

"He was found to have acted with manifest partiality and evident bad faith in refusing to implement lawful orders from competent authorities without justifiable cause," the Office of the Ombudsman said. – with a report from Editha Caduaya/Rappler.com