Winston ordered to refund airfare of 6 COA officials

CEBU, Philippines - The Regional Trial Court has ordered Government Service Insurance System president and general manager Winston Garcia to reimburse the airfare of the six officials of the Commission on Audit, who he has sued for damages, after he failed to appear in yesterday’s hearing.

RTC Branch 9 presiding Judge Geraldine Faith Econg ordered Garcia to reimburse the airfare in coming to Cebu of COA assistant commissioner Raquel Ramirez-Habitan, Leonor Baodo, Joel Estolatan, Rhoda Pileña, Alexander Juliano and Rosalinda Salvador worth P16,900 to attend the hearing.

The hearing was postponed because of Garcia’s failure to appear. The GSIS executive sent lawyer Ernesto Rama to whom he had issued a special power of attorney to represent him, but Econg said that the SPA was insufficient as it did not have the power to obtain the available mode of dispute resolution.

The court cited the Supreme Court ruling in the UCPB versus Magpayo case. Econg however explained that the order for Garcia to reimburse the COA officials was not a fine or a penalty for his failure to appear but a natural consequence.

Garcia earlier filed a civil suit against the COA officials for damages and compensation worth P2.3 million.

Garcia alleged that the COA investigators issued a series of reports containing findings and observations alleging that he and other GSIS officials violated the provisions of the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act as amended and other existing laws, rules and regulations.

The findings and observations were made by an audit team that Habitan has created in 2004 to conduct a special audit on selected transactions of GSIS from 2000 to 2004.

Garcia claimed that the COA has issued a subpoena duces tecum to them to obtain documents from them but he challenged its jurisdiction. According to Garcia, COA failed to secure documents from them prompting it to issue an audit observation memorandum alleging violations of the graft and corrupt practices act.

The audit memorandum was allegedly leaked by COA officials to the media which was made a subject of several commentaries. In fact, the alleged unfounded report was featured in an investigative television show in 2005.

The report was also obtained by then Congressman Rolex Suplico, a known critic of Garcia, who issued statements before the media that malign his person.

The alleged unfounded audit report, Garcia claimed, has besmirched his reputation and other GSIS officials for which he demanded a total of P2.3 million in moral, exemplary and nominal damages including the litigation costs. — Fred P. Languido/MEEV   (THE FREEMAN)