BACOLOD City – Due to his continued absences from Sangguniang Bayan (SB) sessions, Councilor Donato Dumaguit of La Castellana, Negros Occidental could face expulsion.
Dumaguit has not attended six regular SB sessions and one special session since last month after his name was dragged in the controversial Philippine National Police (PNP) recruitment scam.
Teodora Sumagaysay, provincial director of the Department of Interior and Local Government-Negros Occidental, said Dumaguit’s absences could be used as a basis by the La Castellana SB to impose disciplinary action.
The La Castellana SB can also file administrative charges against Dumaguit with the Sangguniang Panlalawigan of Negros Occidental or the Office of the Ombudsman, she added.
Due to the upcoming barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan elections, however, Sumagaysay said it is currently impossible to place Dumaguit under preventive suspension or file an administrative complaint against him.
Meanwhile, the Provincial Legal Office (PLO) in Negros Occidental already received the La Castellana SB’s resolution regarding the councilor’s absences.
PLO head Atty. Alberto Nellas Jr. said they would give their legal opinion to La Castellana’s Mayor Rhumylla Mangilimutan on the councilor’s possible administrative liabilities.
Meanwhile, according to Nella, the disciplining authority for the councilor is the Office of the President.
Dumaguit has made himself scarce, claiming that he, too, was a victim of a certain Mary Jun Delos Santos, the main suspect in the recruitment scam.
He further claimed there’s a plot on his life.
Forty-seven individuals have come forward seeking assistance after they paid significant amounts, hoping to secure positions within the PNP.
Positions in the Philippine Coast Guard, the Bureau of Fire Protection, and the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology were also allegedly promised. (Watchmen Daily Journal)
