The Court of Appeals has sustained the dismissal from service of a former deputy director general of the then Technology and Livelihood Resource Center for dishonesty and grave misconduct in connection with the anomalous disbursement of P35 million in Priority Development Assistance Fund in 2007.
While Dennis Cunanan had resigned in 2014 from the TLRC, now Technology Resource Center, the CA ruled it did not lose its jurisdiction over his petition assailing the resolution of the Office of the Ombudsman in 2017 ordering his dismissal from service.
Three complaints were filed against Cunanan and other TRLC officials before the Ombudsman in connection with the disbursement of at least P35 million in pork barrel funds of then Rep. Salacnib Baterina of Ilocos Sur.
PDAF had been declared unconstitutional by the Supreme Court in 2013.
In his petition, Cunanan argued the complaint against him should have been resolved based on his participation alone and not on the overall acts of TLRC officials in the disbursement of the funds.
However, the appellate court was not persuaded and resolved to uphold Cunanan’s dismissal from service.
“When petitioner [Cunanan] affixed his signature in the disbursement vouchers, he is presumed to have verified that the documents submitted by the NGOs were proper and truthful. In the present case, he flagrantly disregarded the law when he repeatedly certified and signed the said vouchers despite the fact that PSDFI and KMFI were not selected by TLRC through public bidding,” the CA ruled.
“Being the Deputy Director General of TLRC, he ought to know that the mere endorsement of Congressman Baterina is insufficient to determine the implementing non-governmental organization. The lapses in his responsibilities also manifested when the COA discovered that the addresses provided were dubious which he could have known had he conducted a verification of the documents submitted by the NGOs. These aforementioned failures on his part facilitated the release of public funds which caused serious damage and grave prejudice to the government,” it said.
In the ruling against Cunanan, the CA declared that “even if petitioner’s acts were to be separated from the acts of the other officers of TLRC, he should be held liable for the offenses charged against him.”
Case records showed Baterina wrote to then TLRC director general Antonio Ortiz and Cunanan foe the designationof the Philippine Social Development Foundation, Inc. (PSDFI) and Kaagapay Magpakailanpaman Foundation, Inc (KMFI) as recipients of his P35 million PDAF for 2007.