Councilor in PNP ‘recruitment scam’ charged for dereliction of duty

By Dolly Yasa

BACOLOD City – A member of the Sangguniang Bayan (SB or municipal council) of La Castellana, Negros Occidental who was implicated in the alleged P15-million PNP recruitment scam was charged by his peers with dereliction of duty.

SB Member Leonardo Bacquian, chairman of the municipal council’s committee on rules, told Daily Guardian Thursday that they have no choice but to charge councilor Donato “Natnat” Dumaguit for the said violation because he (Dumaguit) has no intention of fulfilling his duties as a member of the Sanggunian.

Bacquian said the charge was contained in a resolution unanimously approved by the municipal council in their regular session Wednesday where the latter was again absent for the seventh straight time.

He said that Dumaguit neglected his duties like signing resolutions passed by the body while he was still attending the sessions.

Dumaguit’s absences also affected the functions of the committees to which he was assigned.

Bacquian also pointed out that they have given Dumaguit substantial due process by giving him several notices and calling his attention to his absences but despite these, he still did not show up and explain his absences.

The unexplained absences also violated the Internal Rules and Procedures of the Sanggunian.

Bacquian said they were able to talk to Dumaguit and the latter said he will not attend the session anymore because he fears for his life.

Dumaguit was accused by some 40 complainants of allegedly mulcting at least P247,000 from each of them in exchange for an assured slot in the PNP.

Eleven of the complainants have filed charges of large scale estafa against Dumaguit.

Meanwhile, La Castellana Mayor Alme Rhummyla Nicor Mangilimutan said that she will refer the case of Dumaguit to Negros Occidental Governor Eugenio Jose Lacson after the municipal council informed her of his six successive unjustified absences.

Mangilimutan told reporters on Wednesday that she received the letter from the municipal council detailing their action taken on the case of Dumaguit.

“As of Wednesday Dumaguit still did not attend the regular session of the municipal council making his unjustified absences to 7,” the mayor said.

In their letter to Mangilimutan, the municipal council furnished the mayor with a copy of Resolution No. 2023-169 entitled “Resolution Informing the Municipal Mayor of the six consecutive unjustified absences of Hon. Donato Dumaguit to the session of the Sangguniang Bayan of La Castellana and the action taken by the honorable body.”

The resolution stated that Dumaguit’s unjustified absences may be sanctioned pursuant to the Internal Rules of Procedure of the Sanggunian, section 50 of the Local Government Code and Article 124 (6) of the Implementing Rules and Regulations of RA 7160.

The resolution also said that the Sangguniang Bayan converted into a committee of the whole and upon deliberation of the committee, it was found out that Dumaguit committed violations provided in numbers 2, 4 and 5 of the IRP of the Sanggunian.