MANILA, Philippines — The Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) has issued show cause orders to 16 mayors from Cagayan Valley and the Cordillera Administrative Region (CAR), seeking explanation for their absence in their respective jurisdictions at the height of the onslaught of Typhoon Ompong last week.
DILG Undersecretary for peace and order Bernardo Florece Jr. said he signed the documents sent to the local executives yesterday.
“They are given five days to explain their side so we expect their explanation by next week,” he said in an interview over ANC.
Florece explained they were initially looking at 10 local chief executives but the number rose to 16 after further validation. He declined to name the officials pending completion of the DILG probe.
He said Mayor Victorio Palangdan of Itogon, Benguet is not in the list. It was in a hillside mining community in Itogon where a mudslide killed at least 21 people Saturday. Dozens more remain missing and are believed to still be buried under tons of mud and debris that fell on their small community, a former mine site of Benguet Corp.
Cagayan Valley and the Cordillera region were the hardest hit by Typhoon Ompong, which caused heavy flooding and triggered landslides in many places.
If the concerned officials would not be able to give valid reasons for their absence, the DILG would file cases against them either in their respective Sangguniang Panlalawigan or with the Office of the Ombudsman.
Depending on the gravity of the offense, the officials could face penalties ranging from one- to six-month suspension to outright dismissal from the service.
Florece said the mayors should have stayed in their areas during the typhoon in compliance with a directive from the DILG that they personally supervise preparations and relief operations during calamities.
“They really have to be there. In the first place they are the chairpersons of the local disaster risk reduction and management councils,” he pointed out.
At Malacañang, presidential spokesman Harry Roque Jr. assured the local officials of due process while under investigation by the DILG.
“They were given time to respond. I’m not sure if it’s five or 10 days, but a day had just passed (since the orders were issued). So they are being accorded their right to due process and decision to be made shortly thereafter,” Roque told reporters.
He said the local mayors have not been publicly identified pending the conclusion of the DILG probe. He stressed that those found liable for neglect of duty should be dealt with severely as allowed under the law.
“We have not yet named the mayors. What we’ve made public is our readiness to impose harsh punishment on mayors who were missing-in-action at the time their constituents needed them most,” he said.
On Thursday, Roque said those found to have been negligent should be fired.
“It is but right to fire those who did not make themselves visible during the typhoon, because in weather conditions that are caso fortuito, we expect that our local governments will be on top of their constituencies,” he said in Filipino.
Early this week, Florece said local chief executives found liable for absenteeism and negligence of duty may be sanctioned with administrative cases.
Based on the DILG’s “Operation Listo” protocols, local chief executives whose jurisdictions fall under the alpha (low-risk), bravo (medium-risk) and charlie (high-risk) areas during typhoons are mandated to personally undertake necessary critical preparedness actions as part of disaster preparations.
DILG spokesman Jonathan Malaya said the names of the municipal and city mayors could not be divulged at the moment as the department is still reviewing their performances vis-à-vis te Operation Listo protocols.
“The department doesn’t want trial by publicity so the actual names of erring mayors will be released after the investigation is complete,” he said. – with Christina Mendez