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[av_heading heading=’Suspended Bacolod workers seek more time ‘ tag=’h3′ style=’blockquote modern-quote’ size=” subheading_active=’subheading_below’ subheading_size=’15’ padding=’10’ color=” custom_font=”]
BY MAE SINGUAY
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BACOLOD City – A lawyer defending five city government employees suspended over cash advances (CAs) asked for more time to file his clients’ answers.
The employees face administrative charges before the mayor’s office.
Atty. Joel Cabalatungan needs more time to peruse records, he said in a motion sent to the investigating committee.
Cabalatungan asked that he and the respondents be given until Sept. 29, or 10 days after filing the motion.
A complaint for gross neglect of duty for failing to liquidate over P9 million in cash advances was filed at the office of Mayor Evelio Leonardia against the following:
* Department of Social Services and Development head Pacita Tero
* City Planning and Development Office assistant head Mae Cuaycong
* Public Affairs Assistance Division personnel Edsel Casilagan
* City Health Office nursing assistant Diana Besañes, and
* Ma. Fe Tresfuentes of the Department of Public Services.
Effective Sept. 7, they were preventively suspended for two months without pay.
The City Legal Office (CLO) headed by Atty. Joselito Bayatan initiated the investigation into the unliquidated CAs and filed the complaint.
The CLO is under the City Mayor’s Office.
Bayatan said Leonardia has the power to discipline city hall employees.
In August, the CLO ordered the five employees to explain why they failed to liquidate P9,625,866 in CAs. They filed liquidations at the Accounting Office but these were returned, the CLO said.
Following are the amount of unliquidated CAs they availed themselves of, the dates when they were acquired and their purposes, according to the CLO:
* Tero – P84,866, May 21, 2014, Philippine National Games (Manila); P3.5 million, April 28, 2015, Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) 2015
* Cuaycong – P3 million, April 21, 2015, APEC 2015
* Casilagan – P500,000, Feb. 11, 2015, representation in the Hong Kong International Chinese New Year Celebration (Feb. 15 to 22, 2015); P11,685, “Lamesa ni Mayor” seminar
* Besañes– P500,000, April 8, 2015, Panaad sa Negros Festival 2015; and
* Tresfuentes – P2,041,000, Nov. 2, 2015, Charter Day celebration 2015.
Commission on Audit rules provide that CAs must be liquidated in full by the end of the year when they were availed, Bayatan said.
Leonardia created an investigating committee to handle the case.
It comprises Atty. Vanessa Encabo, executive assistant for legal matters (chairperson); paralegal Marivic Canada, chief of staff of the City Mayor’s Office; and Atty. Reuben Mikhail Sabig, legal officer III at the CLO./PN
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