‘Ombudsman suspended wrong Bukidnon governor’

MANILA, Philippines – Bukidnon Gov. Jose Ma. Zubiri said yesterday the Office of the Ombudsman erred in ordering his suspension for six months.

On Monday, Ombudsman Conchita Carpio-Morales said Zubiri was found guilty of grave abuse of authority for denying the request to commute or convert to cash the leave credits of former provincial assessor Carlos Ycaro in 2013. Morales ordered the secretary of the Department of the Interior and Local Government to enforce the suspension order.

“The ombudsman ordered the suspension of the wrong governor… It was impossible for me to have committed those omissions because I was not the governor in January 2013,” Zubiri said in a statement.

“I did not have the authority to sign clearances and leave commutation...I did not even see the provincial assessor’s papers,” he added.

Zubiri said Alex Calingasan, who was governor from July 1, 2010 to June 30, 2013, was the only person who was authorized to act on Ycaro’s petition.

Zubiri was vice governor at the time.

He said Ycaro testified that Calingasan “intentionally put Jose Ma. R. Zubiri Jr. over the name of Alex P. Calingasan” as signing authority on his applications for clearance and leave commutation. Zubiri  said he has a copy of the  court stenographic notes.

“The appalling superimposition aside, plain and simple fact-checking should have convinced the ombudsman right away that I was not even in a position to refuse to act on Ycaro’s papers because I was not the governor then,” he said.

Zubiri said he hopes the ombudsman would rectify its mistake.