Caloocan mayor can breathe easy for now

Caloocan City Mayor Recom Echiverri. INQUIRER FILE PHOTO

Embattled Caloocan City Mayor Enrico “Recom” Echiverri may continue to stay in his office without worrying about being evicted, at least for now.

The Court of Appeals on Tuesday indefinitely prevented the Office of the Ombudsman from implementing the suspension order it issued against Echiverri in connection with the graft case Vice Mayor Edgar Erice filed against him in July.

Erice had accused his erstwhile political ally of failing to remit the city government employees’ contributions to the Government Service Insurance System (GSIS) amounting to more than P300 million.

In a 13-page resolution, the appellate court’s Special 14th Division said it granted the injunction order while the court was still deliberating on the “propriety” of the petition for certiorari that the mayor sought to prevent his suspension from office.

It also said it wanted to “preserve the rights of the petitioners during the pendency of the petition.”

Penned by Associate Justice Agnes Reyes-Carpio, the resolution enjoined Ombudsman Conchita Carpio-Morales and Interior Secretary Jesse Robredo from enforcing the suspension order that the antigraft body issued on July 18.