Sandigan orders arrest of Antique governor

Rhodora Cadiao —PHOTO FROM RHODORA CADIAO FACEBOOK

ILOILO CITY — The Sandiganbayan has ordered the arrest of Antique Gov. Rhodora Cadiao after she was indicted by the antigraft court for acts against a provincial government section chief that had deprived him of benefits reaching P1.6 million. Associate Justice Ma. Theresa Dolores Gomez-Estoesta, who chairs the Sandiganbayan’s Seventh Division, issued an arrest warrant against Cadiao on June 7 for violations of Republic Act No. 3019, or the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act. Bail was recommended at P90,000.

In a text message to the Inquirer on Friday, Cadiao declined to comment on the case or say if she was going to surrender. “Let us make the issue die down first. It’s a case filed against me by an AWOL (absent without leave) employee. For now, let it settle first. Hope you understand,” she said without elaborating.

Gomez-Estoesta has ordered the Philippine National Police, the National Bureau of Investigation or any law enforcement officer to arrest and present Cadiao before the court.

The complaint

The case stemmed from a complaint lodged against Cadiao by Provincial General Services Office chief Antonio Dela Vega, who was reassigned in 2016 to a satellite office in Ajuy town, around 100 kilometers north of the provincial capital town of San Jose.

Dela Vega questioned Cadiao’s order, saying it was tantamount to constructive dismissal; and her refusal to sign his daily time record that would have allowed him to collect P1.6 million in representation and travel allowances from July 2016 to February 2018, or the duration of time when he was reassigned to Culasi.

—JOEY MARZAN

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