Customs official suspended over SALN, wealth

MANILA, Philippines - The Office of the Ombudsman has ordered the suspension of a Bureau of Customs official who is under investigation for failure to file her Statement of Assets, Liabilities and Net Worth (SALN) and amassing wealth beyond her lawful income.

The Field Investigation Office (FIO) of the Office of the Ombudsman had filed charges against Emelia Amansec Cervantes, Customs Operations Officer V in the Manila International Container Port (MICP) for violation of Article 183 of the Revised Penal Code and Section 8 of Republic Act 6713 (Code of Conduct and Ethical Standards for Public Officials and Employees).

In its complaint, the FIO said that Cervantes and her husband Juan, a businessman-lawyer, owned several properties and business interests which were not declared in her SALN, including irrigated rice field, a residential lot in San Fabian, Pangasinan; a Mitsubishi Galant worth P377,580; and affiliation with New Beginnings Insurance Agency Co.

The FIO claimed that based on Cervantes’ Service Records and Certificate of Compensation from 1995 to 2005, it was shown that she received an aggregate amount of P2,446,442 as income.

For the same period, however, it was found that her expenses were higher than her income, which could only mean that during those years, she acquired wealth of approximately P3,050,407.11, “an amount which is disproportionate to her lawful income.”

The FIO said that despite diligent efforts, Cervantes’ SALN for the years 2002 and 2003 cannot be located, leading to the presumption that the SALN was not filed.

In a 14-page Order, the Ombudsman ruled that “(a)n initial investigation of the allegations in the complaint would show that the respondent did not only fail to submit her SALN for the years 2002 to 2003, but also failed to declare some of her real and personal properties and the financial connection/business interest of her husband in her submitted SALN.”

The Ombudsman said that there is strong evidence of guilt to warrant the preventive suspension of Cervantes as required under Section 9 of Administrative Order 17, amending Rule III of Administrative Order 07, Rules of Procedure of the Office of the Ombudsman, in relation to Section 24 of Republic Act 6770, otherwise known as “The Ombudsman Act of 1989.”

The Ombudsman also directed the Commissioner of the Bureau of Customs to implement the preventive suspension order immediately and to submit a compliance report within five days from receipt thereof.

In a separate case, the Ombudsman also sought the forfeiture of alleged ill-gotten wealth acquired by Andres Jusayan Gabagat Jr., a Revenue Examiner I at the Tax Fraud Division of the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR).

In an 11-page Petition for Forfeiture of Unlawfully Acquired Properties filed before the Regional Trial Court of Quezon City, the Ombudsman averred that from his entry to the BIR in September 1990 up to July 2001, Gabagat received a total salary of P136,128.00.

He was able to acquire a house and lot worth to P1 million in La Loma, Quezon City in 2001.

The Ombudsman said in its petition “the acquisition of the said property is manifestly out of proportion to respondent’s only known lawful income. Being so, his assets are presumed to have been unlawfully acquired and are thus subject to forfeiture in favor of the government.”

Aside from the house and lot, the Ombudsman also asked the court for the forfeiture of Gabagat’s other personal assets that include jewelry worth P150,000, bank deposits worth P645,304, a racehorse worth P150,000, and a car worth P200,000.