CA clears Valenzuela mayor in deadly factory fire

Mayor Rex Gatchalian —RODEL ROTONI

Valenzuela Mayor Rex Gatchalian was cleared by the Court of Appeals of any liability in one of the worst fire incidents in the country two years ago.

In a decision dated Nov. 28 but released only recently, 15th Division Associate Justice Leoncia Real-Dimagiba granted Gatchalian’s petition to reverse the Ombudsman’s decision which found him guilty of grave misconduct and gross neglect of duty. This was in connection with the death of 74 people in a fire which struck the Kentex Manufacturing Inc. factory in the city on May 13, 2015. The decision was concurred in by Associate Justices Ramon Garcia and Jhosep Y . Lopez.

Dimagiba said that Gatchalian could not be guilty because the Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP) and not the Valenzuela local government was responsible for enforcing the fire code.

According to her, while city hall issues business permits for establishments within its jurisdiction, the BFP is responsible for inspecting and checking their compliance with the fire code, including the issuance of a closure order for non-compliant establishments.

Gatchalian pointed out that 80 percent of fire code inspection fees were remitted to the BFP and his department presumed that BFP inspectors had regularly performed their duties. In the case of Kentex, he said there was no reason to revoke its business permit since the BFP did not give any notice of the firm’s violations.

The court noted that while the BFP issued a notice to comply against Kentex in 2014, it did not notify city hall which issued a business permit to Kentex in 2015. “Mayor Gatchalian did not neglect his duty. Any finding of negligence on his part would be in effect imposing upon him a duty that is not provided by law,” said Dimagiba.