Negros mayor gets no pay for 6 months over denied permit
BACOLOD CITY—The Office of the Ombudsman has ordered Mayor Ella Celestina Garcia-Yulo of Moises Padilla town in Negros Occidental and two other municipal officials to pay a fine equivalent to six months of their salaries for the delay and nonissuance of a business permit to a funeral parlor.
Yulo, Archie Montelibano and Warren Jocson were found guilty of violating Section 21(e) of Republic Act No. 11032, which amended Republic Act No. 9485, also known as the Ease of Doing Business and Efficient Government Service Delivery Act.
Montelibano is Moises Padilla’s civil registrar, administrator-designate and human resource management officer-designate. Jocson is the officer in charge of the Business Permit Licensing Office of the municipality.
The suspension was based on the recommendation of Graft Investigation and Prosecution Officer II Abigail Marie Cinco, who, in a decision dated Feb. 20, but released to the media on Aug. 7, sought the imposition of a fine payable to the Office of the Ombudsman.
Part of ‘challenges’
The fine may be deducted from the respondents’ retirement benefits, accrued leave credits or any other receivable from their office.
Garcia-Yulo said she could not discuss the case at this time but said they would file a motion for reconsideration.
“This is one of the challenges we face in public service. We cannot please everybody, and there may indeed be complaints, but this will not weaken our commitment to serving for the good of the many,” Garcia-Yulo said.
The complainant, Ramona Nalagon Villaflor, filed a complaint against the three on Sept. 11, 2023, for grave abuse of authority and neglect of duty due to the unreasonable delay or failure to act on her application for a business permit.
The complainant is the owner of the Luz Agustin Nalagon Memorial Homes (Nalagon MH) in Moises Padilla.
Villaflor said that in 2022, she secured a mayor’s permit and business license from the municipal government after complying with all the requirements. At that time, she claimed, her relative was still a political ally of Garcia-Yulo.
In January 2023, Villaflor said she applied for the renewal of her business permit after complying with all the requirements. The application, however, was not acted upon for more than four months, she said.
Her application for the renewal of the business permit was ultimately denied in a June 26, 2023, Notice of Denied Business Permit, the complainant said.
While the complaint involved alleged grave abuse of authority and neglect of duty, the Office of the Ombudsman found the respondents guilty of violating the Ease of Doing Business and Efficient Government Service Delivery Act “for failing to render government services within the prescribed processing time on any application or request without due cause.”
