Ombudsman cites Cebu governor in contempt for defying suspension
The Office of the Ombudsman has found outgoing Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia guilty of indirect contempt for defying the preventive suspension against her in the past month, calling her an “ungovernable autocrat.”
Seemingly fed up with her refusal to step aside, the Ombudsman did not mince words in its June 10 order, telling Garcia that it would “no longer tolerate further affronts” to its mandate and reminded her and her lawyers that only the higher courts could pass judgment on its directives.
“Lamentably, your actions have fashioned you into an icon of defiance, exuding an impression … that the governor’s office is occupied by an ungovernable autocrat,” the Ombudsman said in the nine-page document released to reporters on Friday.
Temporary restraining order
She was fined P30,000 for not complying with the order.
On April 29, the antigraft body ordered Garcia suspended for six months over allegations of grave abuse of authority, gross misconduct, serious dishonesty, gross negligence and conduct prejudicial to the best interest of the service, and violation of Republic Act No. 6713, or the Code of Conduct and Ethical Standards for Public Officials and Employees.
Sought for comment, Garcia defended her continued stay in office saying she had already secured last month a temporary restraining order (TRO) from the Court of Appeals (CA), which stopped the Office of the Ombudsman from carrying out her suspension.
“In fact, several media outlets reported that the Office of the Ombudsman has filed a motion to quash on the said CA order. This, in effect, acknowledges the existence of the TRO,” Garcia said in a text message to local reporters on Friday.
She added: “By citing me for indirect contempt, is Ombudsman [Samuel] Martires insisting now that he does not respect the temporary restraining order issued by the Court of Appeals?”
In a resolution dated May 15, the CA’s special 17th division in Manila granted Garcia’s plea to stop her suspension.
The TRO, in effect for 60 days, allowed Garcia to remain in office until her term ends at noon on June 30, Garcia’s legal counsel insisted. Garcia sought reelection in the May 12 polls but was defeated by now Governor-elect Pamela Baricuatro.
Not retroactive
But the Ombudsman said Garcia and her lawyers did not “wield the competence to pass judgments” on its orders.
The Ombudsman was referring to the TRO granted by the CA on May 15, which it disputed because the court order could not be applied retroactively.
“During the intervening period from April 29 to May 15, you had no legal authority to discharge the functions of governor for the simple reason that a TRO does not have retroactive application.”
“Any self-serving misgivings you or your counsel may have espoused regarding the technicalities … cannot, and will not, justify your noncompliance,” it added.
The April 29 suspension stemmed from a complaint filed by a Moises Deiparine in connection with the special permit Garcia issued to Shalom Construction Inc. in May 2024 to desilt the Mananga River at the height of the prolonged El Niño phenomenon without the mandatory clearances from the Department of Environment and Natural Resources, such as the environmental compliance certificate.
The Ombudsman also noted Garcia’s statements quoted by news articles that she had no plan to comply with the Ombudsman’s order.
“Your contemptuous refusal to comply with the preventive suspension order disrupts the overly administration of justice and infringes upon the constitutionally entrenched powers of the Ombudsman,” it said, adding that her noncompliance tantamounts to “insubordination.”
