Pampanga mayor linked to Pogo fights off dismissal
CITY OF SAN FERNANDO—Mayor Jaime Capil of Porac, Pampanga, has asked the Court of Appeals (CA) to reconsider its decision that affirmed the decision of the Office of Ombudsman to dismiss him from government service over gross neglect of duty in regulating a Philippine offshore gaming operator (Pogo) accused of criminal activities from 2020 to 2024.
Capil recently filed a motion for reconsideration following the promulgation of a Dec. 9, 2025, decision by the CA 12th Division, which was released on Wednesday. The mayor’s legal consultant declined statements, saying a motion for reconsideration has been filed.
It was Capil who petitioned the appeals court to review the April 3, 2025, decision and May 26, 2025, order of the Office of the Ombudsman in an administrative case filed by the Department of the Interior and Local Government.
The Ombudsman found him guilty of gross neglect of duty, with penalties of dismissal from service, cancellation of eligibility, forfeiture of retirement benefits and perpetual disqualification for employment in government.
Capil also dealt with seven criminal cases at Branch 265 of the National Capital Judicial Region in Pasig City for violation of the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act, preventing his arrest last November by posting a bail of P630,000 for his temporary freedom.
No error
The CA said the Ombudsman “did not err” when it rendered the decision and resolution on Capil’s case. CA Associate Justice Raymond Reynold Lauigan penned the decision while Associate Justices Marie Christine Azcarraga-Jacob and Ma. Consejo Gengos-Ignalaga concurred.
“We reviewed the records and this court finds that the Office of the Ombudsman did not commit any error when it issued the assailed decision and order, in relation to its finding that petitioner is guilty of gross neglect of duty. Here, such gross neglect of duty on the part of petitioner has been exhibited and can be traceable from the various actions of Capil as Mayor of Porac, Pampanga, in connection with the business operations of Lucky South 99.”
Lucky South 99 was given a Letter of No Objection (Lono) for business process outsourcing in 2020. Capil did not demand a Lono for a Pogo but gave the company permits to operate in 2021, 2022 and 2023 despite reports of illegal activities such as cyberscam, prostitution, human trafficking and torture. President Marcos ordered Lucky South 99 closed in June 2024.
Inquirer sources said Lucky South 99 built more than 40 buildings inside a 10-hectare gated compound at the Porac side of Grand Palazzo Royal. The police filed a criminal case for human trafficking, with an arrest warrant issued last Dec. 15, 2025 with a bail of P120,000.
“As such, the consequent allegation of illegal activities of Lucky South 99 would not have taken place from inception had the same been deterred by the nonissuance of business permits for lack of compliance with the requirements. In effect, the issuance of the business permits resulted in grave consequences for which responsible public officials must be held liable,” the Division said.
It stressed that the “authority and decision making process in the grant of the questioned business permits emanated from and was the sole responsibility and accountability of Mayor Capil.”
The CA also said Capil’s reelection in May last year had no effect in the administrative case because the government had abandoned the condonation doctrine in 2016, adding that it “provided civil servants, particularly local government employees, with blanket immunity from administrative liability that has spawned and breed abuse in the bureaucracy.”
