Court of Appeals affirms Quezon City executive's relief over Manor Hotel fire

MANILA, Philippines - The Court of Appeals (CA) has affirmed with finality the dismissal of the chief of the Business Permits and License Office of the Quezon City government for his liability in the Manor Hotel fire that killed 74 people in 2001.

In a four-page decision written by Associate Justice Rosmari Carandang, the CA’s third division dismissed the petition of Rafael Galvez seeking reconsideration of its earlier ruling that upheld the memorandum issued by the Office of the Ombudsman on July 26, 2004 finding him guilty of gross negligence for allowing the hotel to operate without the necessary permit and despite violations of the Building and Fire Code.

The CA said the appeal of Galvez lacked merit as it did not raise any new issue or matter that was not discussed in the earlier decision issued on Oct. 5, 2007.

The same division earlier upheld the findings off the Fact Finding and Intelligence Bureau (FFIB) of the Office of the Ombudsman that the hotel was operating without a business permit when the fire struck on Aug. 18, 2001.

It noted that its permit was only valid up to June 30, 2001.

It further discovered that Manor Hotel was issued business permits for years 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1999, 2000, and 2001 even without securing clearances from the Bureau of Fire Protection and Electrical Division of the Quezon City government.

The investigation also showed that Galvez approved the renewal of Manor’s permit in 1999 despite receipt of the inspection report dated Feb. 11, 1999 of the city fire department recommending the stoppage of operation of Manor for failure to comply with the provisions of the Fire Code.

The appellate court held that the Office of the Ombudsman correctly ruled that Galvez was remiss in his duties when he issued business permits to operate the hotel despite the absence of Fires Safety Inspection Certificate and violations of the Building and Fire Code.

Galvez, according to the CA, also permitted the hotel management to operate in 1996 and 1998 without renewing its business permit for those years.

“In this case, petitioner failed to exercise his good sense of judgment when he approved the renewal of Manor’s business permit in 1999, 2000 and 2001 notwithstanding the recommendation of the City Fire Marshall to close and stop the operation of Manor for non-compliance with the provisions of the Fire Code,” the CA noted. – Edu Punay