BOC official axed over false SALNs

MANILA, Philippines - The Office of the Ombudsman ordered the dismissal of a Bureau of Customs (BOC) official for giving false information on his statements of assets and liabilities and net worth (SALNs) for 13 years, or from 1997 to 2009.

In a 23-page decision released yesterday, the ombudsman said BOC operations chief Rafael Mendoza Merencilla failed to disclose some of his assets, which include 91,190-square meter property in Lipa, Batangas and agricultural and residential lots acquired in July 2001.

The dismissal order, which takes effect immediately, includes the accessory penalties of cancellation of eligibility, forfeiture of retirement benefits, and perpetual disqualification for reemployment in the government service.

Merencilla was also found to have lied when he declared that he secured loans from the Government Service Insurance System (GSIS) to acquire two townhouses.

The case stemmed from a complaint filed in May 2011 by the Revenue Integrity Protection Service (RIPS), the anti-corruption arm of the Department of Finance, following an audit that showed Merencilla to have allegedly accumulated properties not proportionate to his income.

The ombudsman said the evidence shows there was an “astonishing increase” in Merencilla’s assets, from P4.48 million in 1997 to P29.3 million in 2009 and that neither he nor his wife, who also works at the BOC, applied for any loan from the GSIS.

“To our mind, the scheme was intentionally resorted to by the respondent  to conceal the increase in property holdings by making it appear that he and his wife obtained loans from the GSIS,” the ombudsman said.

It also noted that “the declaration of the respondent that his Honda Accord was acquired in 1998 and was actually a part of his cash on hand during the same year. However, our scrutiny of his cash for the year is only P70,000 vis-à-vis his acquisition cost for this car, which amounted to P510,000.”