THE Office of the Ombudsman in the Visayas has ordered the suspension of a government mailman for berating a customer who simply wanted him to check a mail.
Antonio Bulawit, who is assigned at the Mandaue City Central Post Office, was found guilty of simple misconduct and was meted a one-month suspension without pay.
The Philippine Postal Corporation in Central Visayas was mandated by the anti-graft office to implement the penalty.
The issue stemmed from a complaint filed by Pablo Cailing Jr. who was rudely treated by Bulawit for following up on a mail in November 2009.
In his complaint, Cailing said he requested Bulawit to verify an important mail from the post office.
But Bulawit told him to come back in the afternoon since he was busy cooking for an event.
When he insisted, Bulawit challenged the complainant to a fistfight.
The complainant decided to report the issue before the general manager of the post office.
Bulawit was called by the manager and was told to attend to Cailing’s request.
In response, Bulawit shouted at Cailing and told him that the mail he was looking for had not arrived.
Cailing said Bulawit also called him “hard-headed.”
The Ombudsman cited jurisprudence which considers denial a weak defense.
“The act of respondent respondent (Bulawit) in advising complainant to come back for his mail when he could have attended to the request immediately and his challenging complainant to a fistfight is contrary to law,” said graft investigation and prosecution officer Pioe Dargantes.