THE SUPREME COURT (SC) dismissed a petition from the Department of Finance (DoF) against two Bureau of Customs (BoC) officials over their failure at completely disclosing their Statements of Assets, Liabilities and Networth (SALN) and reversed a Court of Appeals (CA) decision to fine them for simple negligence.
In junking the administrative charges against spouses Uthman F. Mamadra and Rosalinda P. Mamadra, the SC agreed with the CA that their failure to supply complete information in their SALNs did not warrant the penalty of dismissal from the service.
However, the SC disagreed with the CA that the accused were guilty of Simple Negligence and should be fined equivalent to three months of their salaries.
“All told, the Court finds that the administrative charges against the spouses Mamadra should be dismissed,” the SC resolution released on Tuesday read. It also cited the spouse’s efforts to rectify their errors on the SALNs, particularly on the missing details about stakes in private businesses.
In 2018 they were found guilty by the Civil Service Commission and the Office of the Ombudsman of serious dishonesty and grave misconduct for not declaring their real properties in Parañaque City, Cavite, and Mindoro Occidental, firearms, and motor vehicles for their 2003-2012 SALNs.
But the SC decision pointed out that “the spouses Mamadra were not given the opportunity to amend or correct their SALN. Their failure to provide a detailed list or supply missing information could have been prevented if they were properly apprised by the head of office or appropriate committee.” — Chloe Mari A. Hufana
