SC forfeits 1-month pay of Isabela RTC judge

SANTIAGO CITY, Isabela — The Supreme Court has forfeited a one-month salary of a regional trial court (RTC) judge here for non-compliance with a presidential decree on the publication of legal and judicial notices.

In a 17-page decision dated Jan. 17, penned by Associate Justice Antonio Carpio, the tribunal found Executive Judge Fe Albano-Madrid of RTC Branch 21 "liable" for non-compliance with Section 2 of Presidential Decree (PD) 1079 which covers the publications of legal and judicial notices.

In the same decision, the tribunal also directed the Office of the Court Administrator to investigate Rolando Tomas, deputy sheriff of the Santiago City RTC, for possible violation of PD 1079.

The case against Madrid and Tomas stemmed from a complaint of Francisco Taguinod, publisher-owner of the City Star, and Andres Cabanlong, liaison officer and attorney-in-fact of the regional weekly paper Valley Times, accusing the two of irregularities in the distribution and awarding of judicial notices to local papers. — Charlie Lagasca