MANILA – Margaux “Mocha” Uson may no longer be in Malacañang but investigation into the complaints filed against her when she was presidential communications assistant secretary will continue, said the Office of the Ombudsman.
Uson has resigned from the Presidential Communications Operations Office.
Ombudsman Samuel Martires said on Thursday he has directed Uson and PCOO secretary Martin Andanar to comment on the complaint filed by a group of persons with disabilities.
“As a general rule, administrative proceedings will continue even if the respondent have already resigned from government service,” Martires said. “We issued an order requiring her (Uson) and Andanar to file comments.”
Moreover the Ombudsman’s Field Investigation Office sent Uson a letter on Sept. 28 asking her to submit a reply within 10 days to the complaint filed by the Philippine Federation of the Deaf, added Martires.
Uson and blogger Andrew Olivar were slapped with charges before the anti-graft court last week for their controversial video seen as a mockery of the deaf community.
The same group also charged the two before the Commission on Human on Rights. The case is under investigation.
Uson has been charged for violations of the Code of Conduct and Ethical Standards for Public Officials, the Civil Code of the Philippines, the Cybercrime Prevention Act, the Magna Carta for Persons with Disabilities, and the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.
This was the third complaint filed against Uson at the Ombudsman. The previous ones were filed by Akbayan Youth and Sen. Antonio Trillanes IV over her alleged spread of misinformation and performance inside a casino despite being part of the Duterte Cabinet.
On Wednesday Uson announced her resignation during the Senate’s hearing on the PCOO’s 2019 budget. She said her move was her “sacrifice” for their budget to get easily approved by Congress./PN
