CA denies ex-mayor Tumang’s appeal on dismissal by Ombudsman
THE Court of Appeals (CA) has denied the appeal of former mayor Teddy Tumang of Mexico, Pampanga for it to reconsider its decision sustaining his dismissal by the Office of the Ombudsman.
In its resolution dated last Nov. 27, the CA Eight Division said it found no merit to the motion for reconsideration filed by Tumang, former Municipal Engineer and Bids and Awards Committee vice chairman Jesus Punzalan, former administrative officer Luz Bondoc, and former municipal accountant Perlita Lagman.
“A reading of the motion for reconsideration and supplement to the motion for reconsideration shows no cogent and compelling reasons to warrant a reconsideration of this Court’s decision,” the resolution stated.
“The arguments raised in the motion were already given due consideration in the issuance of the questioned decision and were found to be without merit. Thus, this Court finds no new or substantial matter presented to justify a modification or reversal of the assailed decision,” it said.
The resolution was written by Associate Justice Myra Garcia-Fernandez and concurred in by Associate Justices Walter Ong and Jose Lorenzo dela Rosa.
Last July 18, the three-member CA Division affirmed the decision of the Office of the Ombudsman (OMB) dismissing Tumang and the three municipal officials for grave misconduct in connection with their purchase of base course and other construction materials in 2008 without competitive bidding.
Base course is composed of materials like crushed rocks, gravel, recycled asphalt, and soil. It is used as foundation for roads and driveways.
In its complaint, the OMB-Field Investigation Unit said the town of Mexico, under then Mayor Tumang, bought the construction supplies from Buyu Trading and Construction without public bidding in violation of Republic Act No. 9184, or the Government Procurement Reform Act.
It said the officials resorted to “shopping,” a mode of purchase they were not allowed under the law to use.
The construction materials were worth about P773,000.
Tumang is also being investigated by the House Quad Committee for allegedly facilitating the purchase by several Chinese nationals posing as Filipinos of large tracts of land in the town of Mexico.
On one such lot, the Chinese built a warehouse, where authorities seized P3.6-billion worth of shabu in September 2023.
The Quad Committee has asked the concerned agencies to cancel the birth certificates, Filipino citizenship, Philippine passports, and land titles fraudulently acquired by Chinese nationals.
