LPG center owner strikes back, sues DOE director, inspectors

CEBU, Philippines —  An owner of an LPG center in Carmen town, Cebu has sued officials and inspectors of the Department of Energy-7 before the Office of the Ombudsman over a raid for alleged illegal refilling of petroleum products.

LPG Center owner Sheila Mae Zenith sued Department of Energy-Visayas Field Office acting regional director Russ Mark Gamallo and inspectors Barrytone Busi and Christian Kim Po, Danao City Police Station officer-in-charge PLtCol Fortunato Ecle, and two private individuals Edgar Armecin and Ronilio Laruya before the Office of the Ombudsman-Visayas.

Gamallo, Busi and Po were charged for grave misconduct, grave abuse of authority, oppression and gross incompetence.

Ecle was charged for grave misconduct, grave abuse of authority, and conduct unbecoming of a public officer.

Armecin and Laruya were charged for conspiring and conniving with the said public officers and for usurpation of authority.

The complainant also asked the anti-graft body to put the respondent-public officers be suspended from office pending investigation.

Zenith alleged that at about 3:30 in the morning of January 16, 2022, Gamallo, together with the personnel from Danao City Police Station, conducted a “surprise inspection” of FMZ LPG Center in Dawis Sur, Carmen, Cebu (not in Dunggoan, Danao City as claimed by the police).

The inspection resulted in the arrest of 12 individuals and confiscation of around 12,000 empty canisters and around 200 filled canisters of various LPG brands, 13 units LPG refilling machines, two vehicles, LPG bullet tank, tank truck, five compressors, two improvided refiller, a generator set and fire extinguisher.

Zenith claimed that the authorities forcibly entered the center without any judicial warrant, which is a gross violation of the law, while private individuals Armecin and Laruya, conspired and connived with the said public officers and are associated with her competitors.

The complaint stated that if there were indeed reports of violations by FMZ LPG Center reaching the DOE-VFO, the proper action for DOE under its power should have been to issue a show cause order requiring the suspected erring entity to explain why it should not be held accountable and its licenses revoked for alleged violation of the laws and regulations of the industry, which is the administrative way.

And if DOE wanted to choose the criminal way, it should have filed an application for search warrant before the proper court.

“What OIC Director Gamallo and his team did instead, in connivance with the police, was to forcibly enter private property at 3:30am over the objections of company security personnel, carting away every piece of equipment and other immobile properties bolted therein. Such acts are patently illegal, palpably arbitrary, and a blatant abuse of power,” the complaint read.

The complainant further asked the Ombudsman to investigate Gamallo’s close personal relationship with certain personalities who are her business competitors, including those who bear a personal grudge against her.

The defendants have yet to answer the allegations hurled before them. — KQD (FREEMAN)