Before the Ombudsman: NBI-7 sues town mayor
CEBU, Philippines — The National Bureau of Investigation-Central Visayas (NBI-7) has formally charged Dalaguete Mayor Ronald Allan Cesante and 11 others before the Office of the Ombudsman-Visayas on March 28, 2025.
NBI-7 charged Cesante and his co-accused with three violations: Section 3(e) of Republic Act 3019, or the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act; Article 217 of the Revised Penal Code (Malversation of Public Funds or Property); and grave misconduct as penalized under Republic Act 6713, or the Code of Conduct and Ethical Standards for Public Officials and Employees.
The charge of grave misconduct applies only to government officials and employees, excluding the private individuals involved.
Aside from Cesante, a reelectionist, those charged include Expedizitas Lenares, Dalaguete municipal engineer; James Osorio, Municipal Engineering Office, Dalaguete Municipal Hall; Sergio Bendulo Jr. chief, DPWH-District Engineering Office; and Juan Paulo Castillo, junior project engineer, DPWH-7-DEO.
Also facing charges are five officials of Socor Construction Corporation (SCC).
In a press release, NBI-7 stated that the charges stemmed from a complaint filed by Engineer Ildebrando Almagro, a former Dalaguete municipal employee and concerned citizen. Prior to Almagro’s complaint, the agency had also received similar complaints from anonymous sources.
Following an investigation, NBI-7 concluded that Cesante and his co-accused violated the law when they allegedly conspired with officials from the Dalaguete local government unit (LGU) and the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) to execute a PHP 9.65-million road repair and concreting project along ML Quezon Street, Poblacion, Dalaguete, Cebu.
The project was supposed to be carried out by DPWH’s winning bidder, Socor Construction Corporation. However, NBI-7 found that LGU Dalaguete allegedly used its own resources—heavy equipment and manpower—to complete the work.
Despite not doing the actual work, Socor Construction Corporation reportedly collected the proceeds of the project.
“Herein subjects used the resources of the Government/LGU Dalaguete in performing the concreting project by using heavy equipment and manpower of LGU Dalaguete. Despite not doing the actual work, Socor Construction Corp., through their representative, collected the proceeds of the construction project,” NBI-7 stated.
NBI-7 noted that this kind of modus operandi is not new to the Dalaguete LGU.
In October 2024, similar charges were filed against Cesante and others for constructing a multi-purpose building in Maloray, Dalaguete, Cebu. The building was supposed to be built by the winning bidder, however, the LGU allegedly undertook the construction itself, leading to an accident that killed a job order employee.
Almagro, who is a mayoral candidate in Dalaguete, said in his complaint that he was compelled to file the case following NBI-7’s investigation into the worker’s death on June 11, 2024.
In his affidavit, Almagro stated that the misuse of municipal resources caused tangible harm to both the government and taxpayers.
“Resources such as municipal equipment, maintenance funds, fuel, and employee manpower are essential assets for public service,” he said.
“When diverted to fulfill a private contractor’s obligations, these resources are no longer available to serve the legitimate needs of the municipality and its residents. As a result, the local government is deprived of its ability to fully meet community needs—whether it be road maintenance, emergency response, or other vital services that rely on municipal resources and manpower,” Almagro added.
He further emphasized that the financial strain caused by this misallocation extends to taxpayers, who bear the costs of maintaining municipal equipment and paying municipal employees.
“The use of public funds and assets for a private project has resulted in unnecessary expenses for the local government, which will need to allocate additional budget to cover the maintenance, fuel, and operational costs for resources that would otherwise not have been expended,” he said.
Almagro believes that by allowing municipal resources to be used for a private project, the respondents either actively authorized the misappropriation or neglected their duty to prevent it.
His claims were supported by three other witnesses: Josephine Sara Zambrano, Rose Paz Batoctoy, and Teodoro Caballero, who provided testimonies highlighting additional instances of alleged misconduct.
Zambrano recounted that before the project began, the Dalaguete LGU held a meeting led by Engineer Expeditas Lenares. She also claimed that during a visit to the mayor’s office, she personally met with Mayor Cesante, who handed her P4,000 as compensation for her mango tree.
Batoctoy stated that she observed LGU-owned trucks and excavators being used for the project and expressed concerns about the quality of work. She noted that areas recently completed had already started deteriorating, with visible potholes and cracks.
Caballero, meanwhile, testified that every time he passed by the project site, he saw workers he personally knew to be municipal employees of Dalaguete.
When sought for comment, Cesante told The Freeman he would issue an official statement once he receives an official copy of the complaint.
“Mag-invite ra niya ko og taga-media aron moadto gyud ta sa project site kung tinuod ba gyud na iyang pamasangil nga naay corruption,” Cesante said. — (FREEMAN)
- Latest