Top 3 posts at Ombudsman remain vacant

Manila, Philippines - Overall Deputy Ombudsman Orlando Casimiro is now juggling four jobs at the Office of the Ombudsman as the top three positions at the anti-graft agency remain vacant.

With the resignation of Ombudsman Merceditas   Gutierrez on May 6, Casimiro became acting Ombudsman aside from being head of the Office of the Deputy Ombudsman for Luzon, a position vacated by Mark Jalandoni a month before.

And with his enforcement of Malacañang’s dismissal order against Emilio Gonzalez III last March 21, Casimiro became acting deputy ombudsman for Military and Other Law Enforcement Offices.

But even with his hands full, Casimiro said yesterday the public should have nothing to worry about.

“I want to inform the public that right now, the Office of the Ombudsman is functioning and it is performing its mandate even as the Judicial and Bar Council (JBC) is screening candidates for the ombudsman post,” he said in a statement.

Casimiro said the anti-graft agency continues to perform its function judiciously despite the vacancies.

The JBC has started accepting nominations for the top ombudsman post. After screening the nominees, the JBC will submit three names to the President, who will make the final choice.

Under Republic Act 6770 or the Ombudsman Act of 1989, the President has to appoint an ombudsman within three months of vacancy in the position.

The law mandates that that “the Overall Deputy Ombudsman shall serve as acting ombudsman in a concurrent capacity until a new ombudsman shall have been appointed for a full term.”

Casimiro has been with the Office of the Ombudsman since 1991, first as Graft Investigation Officer (GIPO) II.

He was later promoted to director, then assistant ombudsman to deputy ombudsman for the MOLEO and later as officer-in-charge of the Office of the Overall Deputy Ombudsman.

The Ombudsman Employees Association (OMBEA) headed by its president Eric Durano Gutierrez earlier voiced its preference for Casimiro as the next ombudsman.

“I favor someone from the inside rather than an outsider,” Gutierrez told The STAR. The Office of the Ombudsman has 900 personnel.

“He knows every square inch of the operations at the Office of the Ombudsman,” Gutierrez said.