Ombuds junks criminal case vs Rama, 6 others

CEBU, Philippines — Former Cebu City mayor Michael Rama walks free of any charges after the Office of the Ombudsman (OMB) dismissed a criminal complaint against him and six other city officials for conspiring to reassign four career employees without valid reasons and withholding their salaries for more than six months.

In a resolution issued this month, the Ombudsman ruled that there was no probable cause to indict Rama and his co-respondents for violations of the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act.

The decision found no evidence of conspiracy, bad faith, or criminal intent in the reassignment orders or the delayed release of salaries, concluding that the actions did not amount to graft.

This dismissal is specifically related to the criminal case. It follows a separate administrative ruling issued last month, in which Rama and former city assessor Maria Theresa Rosell were found guilty of oppression and grave abuse of authority concerning the same incident.

That decision, also from the Ombudsman, described the reassignment as “cruel, excessive, and without legal basis,” and penalized both officials with a one-year suspension, later converted into a fine since they were no longer in government service.

The criminal complaint was filed by Filomena Atuel, Maria Almicar Diongzon, Sybil Ann Ybañez, and Chito Dela Cerna—all regular employees of the City Assessor’s Office. They alleged that they were abruptly reassigned to unrelated offices, stripped of their pay, and denied work assignments despite a favorable ruling from the Civil Service Commission (CSC).

In October 2023, CSC Region VII declared the reassignment orders “invalid and without legal effect,” noting that the transfers did not serve any urgent public need and deprived the employees of their right to work and receive compensation. Rama’s motions for reconsideration were denied in the months that followed.

In its latest ruling on the criminal aspect of the case, however, the Ombudsman said Rama’s actions did not meet the threshold for prosecution.

It cited his reliance on civil service rules that allow decisions to be temporarily suspended pending appeal, and referenced case law affirming that reassignment—even if contested—is not automatically criminal.

The resolution also noted that the delays in salary release were tied to fiscal procedures and the need for a City Council ordinance, not personal gain or malice.

City Administrator Collin Rosell and five other officials—Francis May Jacaban, Angelique Cabugao, Jay-Ar Pescante, Lester Joey Beniga, and Nelyn Sanrojo—were likewise cleared of criminal liability.

The dismissal of the criminal case marks the end of a nearly two-year legal battle for Rama, who was previously dismissed from public office in 2024 for nepotism and grave misconduct.

That separate decision was upheld in early 2025, and Rama lost his bid for reelection in the May 2025 polls.

His preventive suspension over the reassignment controversy had earlier allowed then Vice Mayor Raymond Alvin Garcia to assume the mayoralty for several months, but he and Rama eventually failed in their mayoralty bid to Nestor Archival. (CEBU NEWS)