The unkindest word vs DOJ's Gonzalez

It was the harshest indictment of Justice Secretary Raul Gonzalez. The reason: Murcia, Negros Occidental Mayor Esteban Coscolluela is not even involved in the political intramurals in Iloilo, yet he delivered the harshest words against Gonzalez and the latter’s prosecutors.

Coscolluela described them as “hoodlums” operating at the DOJ.

Coscolluela also hopes that the Senate and House will probe his claims that Gonzalez had issued conflicting DOJ decisions relating to the market rentals in his town. “For the good of the country” was how he described it.

And he also asked President Arroyo to investigate Gonzalez.

Yesterday, Coscolluela said he would file criminal and administrative complaints against Gonzalez – actually the second set of charges he had filed against the justice secretary.

He said the complaints would be filed with the Supreme Court on Monday, in addition to those filed with the Ombudsman-Visayas.

In his letter to the President, Coscolluela also asked the Chief Executive to dismiss Gonzalez.

The Ombudsman complaint is for alleged violation of the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act.

Taken aback by Coscolluela’s position, former provincial board member Bob Cuenca pointed out that the Murcia mayor must really have been hurt for he is not involved in the political intramurals in Iloilo.

Coscolluela cited the “anomalous, illegal and irregular” decisions Gonzalez had rendered on the Murcia public market.

He said Gonzalez allegedly issued two conflicting decisions involving the constitutionality and legality of the Murcia ordinance approving new rental rates as determined by a joint economic enterprises and development committee on June 23, 2008.

The first decision on Dec. 12, 2008 dismissed the case against the municipality, saying that jurisdiction over the case should properly be raised before the trial courts.

However, last Jan. 8, without anybody filing for a motion for reconsideration, Gonzalez reversed his earlier resolution and declared null and void and without legal effect the ordinance passed by Murcia’s Sangguniang Bayan, Coscolluela declared.

The second decision contradicted Gonzalez’s Dec. 12 decision but did not make mention or reference to the earlier decision, he said.

Coscolluela said, “Apparently Gonzalez forgot that he had already declared that the DOJ has no jurisdiction to entertain the case.”

“This is highly anomalous; it is something that we cannot forgive. This is a very clear case of influence peddling,” Coscolluela said.

He believes that “there was an attempt to substitute the earlier decision,” contending that he had received information that “somebody intervened.”

Gonzalez had been the target of a three-cornered attack by the camp of Iloilo Gov. Niel Tupas who asked for the replacement of Gonzalez by a person of untarnished integrity.

Provincial administrator Manuel Mejorada also asked that Gonzalez be removed. He and Rep. Niel Tupas Jr. demanded a thorough investigation by the House into a series of allegedly questionable resolutions by the provincial prosecutor’s office on several drug-related cases.

Mejorada said he is filing an administrative case against Chief Provincial Prosecutor Bernabe Dusaban for gross ignorance of the law and willful negligence.

Both Rep. Tupas and Mejorada cited the illegal drug cases against the so-called “Balasan Boys” which Dusaban reportedly failed to submit to the regional prosecutor for automatic review.

The provincial prosecutor reportedly downgraded the cases against O’Henry Caspilo and Polly Tiope, both of the town of Balasan, to just mere possession of dangerous drugs when the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency had recommended a case of drug pushing against them.

In fairness to Gonzalez he had ordered Regional State Prosecutor Domingo Laurea Jr. to order Dusaban to explain why he had failed to submit the resolution for automatic review, as required by a justice department circular.

Mejorada and Gov. Tupas also narrated a series of similar incidents where the recommended prosecution by the PDEA had also been downgraded. As a matter of fact, several police groups had complaints with the provincial government because of alleged suspicious actuations by the government prosecutors.

This was the reason why Gov. Tupas withheld the P1.7-million allowance for prosecutors by the provincial government.

Well, in the face of the “Alabang Boys” case and the recent call by Camiguin businessmen to look into the “unusual downgrading” by Gonzalez of charges against a provincemate in connection with allegedly fraudulent multimillion-peso land deals, the justice secretary is now the subject of a flurry of charges.

How long he can withstand these accusations remains to be seen.