Ombudsman clears Belmonte, 3 others of misconduct raps

Quezon City Mayor Feliciano Belmonte Jr. and three other officials have been acquitted of grave misconduct and oppression charges filed before the Office of the Ombudsman by officials of Benchmark International Corp., a domestic corporation operating small town lottery (STL) in the city.

In a 14-page decision, the Office of the Ombudsman said that Belmonte; Pacifico Maghacot Jr., officer-in-charge of Business Permits and Licensing Office (BPLO); Rodolfo Dimaisip, consultant at the Office of the Assistant City Administrator; and former Quezon City Police District director Chief Superintendent Nicasio Radovan, “were acting in good faith when they arrested officers and employees of Benchmark during a raid on March 25, 2006.

“As the order of Mayor Belmonte against Benchmark appeared regular, reasonable and consistent with the ambit of his power under the Local Government Code,” the decision said.

Reacting to the Ombudsman’s decision, Belmonte said he is against the operation of STL in Quezon City.

“Jueteng (an illegal numbers game) will never enter Quezon City. Isn’t STL another form of jueteng?” he said.

The Ombudsman also said the complainants were caught while actually drawing lots without a permit, despite ample notice from the city government that it would not sanction STL in the absence of a permit.

Records show that a team led by Dimaisip raided Benchmark’s branch office in Quezon City on March 25, 2006 while it was conducting a lottery draw for its test run in the city.

Benchmark officials and employees were handcuffed and detained at Camp Karingal, Quezon City until the following day for violating Presidential Decree 1602 as amended by Republic Act 9287 and the City Ordinance SP-91, Series of 1993 or operating without a mayor’s permit.

The incident prompted Benchmark to file charges, alleging that its operation was legal after the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO) gave them the authority to operate the STL on a test-run basis in Quezon City.

They added that the Quezon City Council, through Resolution SP-3237 dated Feb. 20, 2006, gave them a special use permit for their operation.

Benchmark said it did not secure a mayor’s permit because it was simply an agent of the PCSO.

The company’s corporate secretary, Crisostomo Miranda, sent a letter to Belmonte to inform him of their operation and present their credentials and documents.

In his reply, Belmonte declared he was not in favor of the STL’s trial run in the city. He directed Maghacot to issue a cease and desist order against Benchmark on March 23, 2006, two days before the raid.

In their counter-affidavit dated last Feb. 5, Belmonte and other city hall officials said their course of action against Benchmark is legal and justified since they acted under the aegis of the general welfare clause and presumption of good faith in the performance of official duties.

They said the gaming firm operated without a mayor’s permit and authorization from PCSO to test-run STL. They added that Benchmark was not accorded the privileges and exemptions Congress gave to PCSO because the firm is an independent contractor.