CA affirms dismissal of case vs. Winston Garcia, others

CEBU, Philippines - The appellate court affirmed the decision of the Office of the Ombudsman dismissing the administrative complaints filed against former Government Service Insurance System (GSIS) president and general manager Winston Garcia and 15 others.

Associate Justice Elihu Ybañez of 14th Division sees no reason to amend the decision of the anti-graft office clearing Garcia and others for serious nonfeasance, grave misconduct and conduct prejudicial to the best interest of the service.

“Wherefore, the instant petition for review is dismissed. The assailed order dated September 6, 2007 of the Office of the Ombudsman is affirmed,” the decision reads.

Other respondents were Bernardino Abes, Victoria Ablan, Jesse Andres, Raymundo Lapating, Esperanza Ocampo, Reynaldo Palmiery, Alejandro Roces, Jesus Santos, Nita Javier, Estrella Elamparo, OIC vice president Arni Mercado, Claro Flores, Dominador Bornasal Jr. and two others who are unidentified.

The petition for review was filed by Berteni Causing who said that the National Press Club (NPC) leased a portion of land to the telephone company for 50 years then after built its own building using a loan from GSIS, with the lot and building as collateral.

However, he said the NPC failed to pay its loan to the GSIS and failed to pay the realty taxes to the City of Manila.

With that, the city government of Manila sold the property at a public auction and it was bought by the GSIS.

In their answer, the respondents asserted that “the GSIS, which already owned the property after the foreclosure of the mortgage, was compelled to buy the property at a public auction to prevent it from falling into the hands of other persons. In other words, the failure of NPC to pay realty taxes forced GSIS to reacquire its own property.”

Mercado reportedly wrote NPC a demand letter to vacate the property but the NPC refused, prompting them to file an unlawful detainer.

Causing, however, said the acts of the GSIS officials in filing a complaint and demanding that the NPC vacate the lot has no consent from the president of the Philippines in violation of Republic Act 905 or an act authorizing the president to sell a certain parcel of land of the private domain of the National Government to the NPC.

Former President Ferdinand Marcos issued Letter of Instruction (LOI) 500 directing the GSIS to donate, transfer, convey or cede a portion of the land to the NPC upon the enactment of RA 905.

Upon the recommendation of graft investigator Russel Labor, Overall Deputy Ombudsman Orlando Casimiro dismissed the administrative complaints filed against the respondents. Labor said the filing of complaint was a “mere afterthought and a leverage for the cases filed by the GSIS against the NPC.”

Labor added Causing can seek another remedy before the court to settle their claims over the subject lot.

The issue to be resolved was the non-compliance of the LOI which was issued 30 years before the filing of the said complaints.

Ybañez ruled that since the possession of NPC of the subject property was by mere permission on the part of the GSIS, the NPC was bound to follow the demand of the GSIS. — (FREEMAN)