Ombudsman junks another motion to suspend CDC execs

CLARK FIELD, Pampanga — The Office of the Ombudsman has junked another motion to suspend the president and chief executive officer and other top officials of the Clark Development Corp. (CDC).

The motion involved the state-owned firm’s takeover of the Clark Power Corp. (Clark Power) in July last year.

Clark Power president Victor Santos has accused CDC president and chief executive officer Emmanuel Angeles and other CDC officials of "grave misconduct" for the takeover which, he claimed, was done "without any warning or advance notice" and employed "heavily armed men."

In his complaint, Santos said the only document which the CDC had during the takeover was a letter signed by Angeles terminating the lease contract between Clark Power and CDC.

During the takeover, he said armed men ordered Clark Power employees "to immediately vacate the premises without giving them the opportunity to get their personal belongings inside the building."

Angeles ordered the takeover of Clark Power after the National Power Corp. (Napocor) warned that it would cut off power to the Clark special economic zone (CSEZ) if Clark Power failed to pay its P30-million arrears.

Angeles noted that Clark Power had then reneged on its payment of land rentals to the CDC, amounting to some P15 million.

"It had to be done in the greater interest of the majority, particularly the hundreds of investors in the CSEZ which could have suffered considerable losses that would arise from a power shutdown," he said.

In dismissing the motion for the preventive suspension of CDC officials, Deputy Ombudsman for Luzon Victor Fernandez cited the lack of requisites that would justify such a move.

The other respondents were CDC vice president for operations and technical services Pepito Galang, managers Mariza Mandocdoc (real property administration and regulatory department) and Carmen Trinidad (public safety department) and all CDC engineers.

Earlier, the Ombudsman also denied for lack of merit another motion to suspend Angeles and Mimosa Golf and Country Club general manager Richard Atendido over an allegedly irregular deal.