Supreme Court upholds ban on Laguna mayor

The Supreme Court has affirmed the decision of the Office of the President to permanently bar from holding public office the former general manager of the Laguna Lake Development Authority who was found guilty of “giving undue advantage” to some fish pen operators in Laguna Lake.

In a 27-page decision, the high tribunal said Calixto Cataquiz, the incumbent mayor of San Pedro, Laguna, should still be held administratively liable for violating the antigraft law even if the Office of the Ombudsman had cleared him of criminal liability.

“His absolution from criminal liability is not conclusive upon the Office of the President, which subsequently found him to be administratively liable,” the court said in its September 14 ruling.