CA reverses Ombudsman’s suspension of Antique town mayor

Antique. INQUIRER FILES

The Court of Appeals (CA) has directed the Department of the Interior and Local Government and the local governments and police officials of Antique province to permanently reinstate Mayor Ernesto Tajanlangit III of Tobias Fornier town after nullifying his suspension over a dispute with the vice mayor regarding food pack distribution.

The CA’s Fourteenth Division, in a decision dated Dec. 18, 2024, granted Tajanlangit’s petition for review that set aside the Sept. 10 order of the Office of the Ombudsman imposing a six-month preventive suspension against the mayor.

“Simply put, the assailed order is devoid of any findings or basis that he was derelict in his duties as municipal mayor or that he acted beyond his authority in halting the distribution of food packs that did not comply with the proper procedures established by the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD),” the CA said in the ruling penned by Associate Justice Roberto Quiroz.

Who filed first

The CA noted the lack of clarity in the circumstances the Ombudsman relied upon in finding sufficient grounds to suspend Tajanlangit, constituting grave abuse of discretion, especially since the antigraft body disregarded the mayor’s complaint filed more than a month before Vice Mayor Jose Maria Fornier’s complaint.

Tajanlangit was the first to file a complaint against Fornier before the Office of the Ombudsman on May 7, 2024, while Fornier filed his own complaint against Tajanlangit on June 24 that year.

The Ombudsman had acted on Fornier’s complaint that accused Tajanlangit of abuse of authority, grave misconduct, conduct unbecoming of a public official and violations of the Code of Conduct and Ethical Standards for Public Officials and Employees when the mayor, on April 24, 2024, allegedly blocked and hijacked the distribution of food packs he requested from Gov. Rhodora Cadiao and approved by the DSWD for distribution to residents affected by the drought spawned by the El Niño weather phenomenon.

The heated argument between the two officials over the handling of the relief drive resulted in Fornier first punching the mayor, which escalated into an exchange of blows.

Tajanlangit, upon receiving his suspension order, did not seek reconsideration from the Ombudsman but immediately sought relief from the CA.