T Former Panglao Mayor Doloreich Dumaluan posted bail after a warrant was served for his arrest by the Cebu Municipal Trial Court in Cities Branch 3 for a case involving non-filing of his statements of assets and liabilities and net worth (SALN) The arrest warrant for Dumaluan was issued by Judge Oscar Andrino for criminal cases nos. 149818-R to 149822-R for violation of section 8 in relation to Section 11 of Republic Act 6713. In his order dated Sept. 28, Andrino issued the warrant against Dumaluan after personally evaluating the information and attachments. The judge fixed the bail bond at P10,000 for each count. Dumaluan immediately posted a cash bond of P40,000 for each of the four counts for his temporary liberty. In a resolution dated Sept. 13, 2006, the Office of the Ombudsman Visayas found sufficient evidence to prove that Dumaluan failed to file his SALN for the years 2001 to 2003 during his term as vice-mayor of Panglao.

The resolution noted that Dumaluan questioned the motive in filing the case and wondered why complainant singled him out when all other elective officials of Panglao failed to file their SALN for the years 2001 to 2003. Dumaluan explained that it was the usual practice that a staff of the Sangguniang Bayan prepared his SALN and delivered and turned it over to the Nenito Sanchez, the local government operations officer of Panglao. Sanchez was supposed to be the officer who would forward the SALN to the Ombudsman. Upon verification, Dumaluan came to know that Sanchez failed to submit his SALN which was later found lying inside a stock room of the municipality. The resolution noted that there is no question that Dumaluan is required by law to submit his SALN. What needed to be resolved is whether or not the circumstances behind his failure to file his SALN are meritorious enough to whisk his case away from the penal sanctions. It added that it is clearly specified under R.A. No. 6713 that local officials are supposed to file their SALN with the Deputy Ombudsman concerned.

According to the resolution, it is immaterial if indeed there was that (customary) procedure for the presiding officer and members of the Sangguniang Bayan of Panglao, to simply hand over their SALN to the Local Government Operation Officer. “Presumably, the arrangement was meant to facilitate the convenient filing of the SALN but, by itself, it could not suffice as filing with the correct office as specified under the law,” the resolution added. It stressed that the so-called operation officer is not an agent or official representative of the Ombudsman, and neither is he authorized by law to receive and be the custodian of the SALN. The resolution said that it is beyond doubt that respondent really failed to file his SALN for the years 2001 to 2003. It stressed that the failure of other SB members to likewise file their respective SALN who were not included in complaint “does not at all validate his non-filing of SALN”. “What can be more ironic than letting an offender off the hook just because there are others like him who violated the law. This Office regrets that respondent (and other concerned SB members) apparently never followed through the proper filing of his SALN,” the resolution added.

It added that had Dumaluan been mindful enough, it would have been no more serious than one instance of inadvertence resulting in the non-filing of a year’s SALN at the worst,” not a trail of non-filing for a whole elective term!” “The circumstances behind the subject failure to file in basic terms illustrate the complacency of the officials involved and reflects how they belittle the task of accomplishing and submitting the SALN,” the resolution noted. The resolution was signed by graft investigation and prosecution officer II Sarah Jo Vergara. Last June 28, graft investigation and prosecution officer Eduardo Kangleon filed the four counts of information before the MCTC in Cebu City against Dumaluan.