By ERWIN ‘AMBO’ DELILAN
THE 10-month-old “abono fiasco” at the capitol of Negros Occidental refuses to die. Axed Agriculturist 1 Hermenigildo Basilio, on Aug. 21, issued a press statement.
He claimed: “I was no longer in charge of the Rice Processing Center (RPC) in Barangay Tabunan, Bago City for more than one year at the time the 789 bags of fertilizer went missing.”
The disappearance of the fertilizer was discovered on Oct. 18, 2022. RPC was where the fertilizers were delivered, received and stocked.
Basilio recalled that around 3 p.m. of July 4, 2022, he was ordered by his direct superior, Alnel “Potchie” Taba, head of the Technology Development and Agri Division (TDAD) of the Office of the Provincial Agriculturist (OPA), to receive the fertilizers delivered by the Department of Agriculture (DA) Region 6.
May we hear from Taba, too?
The problem is that Taba could no longer be reached. His resignation was unheard until Basilio’s revelation.
Taba’s resignation followed the Aug. 1 resignation of OPA chief Edmundo Raul Causing. Both cited health reasons, according to Gov. Bong Lacson.
In a press conference, the governor said the provincial government could not chase Taba anymore.
Taba already resigned, said Gov. Lacson, so, it would be an uphill to summon or file administrative charges against him.
Questions:
* Did Provincial Attorney Alberto Nellas Jr. also include Taba in the investigation of the missing fertilizers?
* Why did the probe focus on Basilio and casual employee Joy Cardinal only?
Basilio said he felt like he was being made a scapegoat. He said his dismissal from the service “after more than a decade of loyal service to the provincial government due to 789 bags of fertilizer…is devastating for me and my family.”
“It shows that injustice prevails at the halls of the provincial capitol,” he added.
Thus, he furthered, “I strongly decry my dismissal from service for grave charges without any evidentiary support. I have already explained my side, which was made under oath, providing names of persons (not just Taba) who should have been included in the investigation, if such was made to uncover the truth.”
“However,” he lamented, “I am now left with no recourse but to appeal my dismissal before an impartial authority.”
The governor welcomed Basilio’s move. But Nellas’s silence was “deafening”.
But is that all you can do and say, Gov. Bong?
Gov. Bong is considered a rare breed of politician. He is deemed “spotless”. The “abono fiasco” is a test of his impartiality, fairness.
The governor must be keen about two weighty words – injustice and fairness. The Bible in Romans 9:14, it says, “What shall we say then? There’s no injustice with God, is there? May it never be!”
While Euripides enunciated: “In case of dissension, never dare to judge till you’ve heard the other side.”/PN
