OROQUIETA CITY, Misamis Occidental – Gov. Henry S. Oaminal clarified that the mayor and vice mayor of Bonifacio town were both slapped with 60-day preventive suspension allegedly for “betrayal of public trust.”
Oaminal said the Sangguniang Panlalawigan of Misamis Occidental placed Mayor Samson Dumanjug and his spouse Vice Mayor Evelyn Dumanjug under preventive suspension on May 30.
Incidentally, the suspension order came out six days on June 5, prior to the expiration of the six-month preventive suspension the spouses had been serving.
It can be recalled that the Misamis Occidental SP had also placed the spouses under six-month preventive suspension in case No. 01-22 allegedly for various offenses ranging from abuse of authority to graft and corruption, misconduct, and dishonesty in 2020.
The spouses appealed the SP decision to the Office of the President who then reversed the SP decision. Malacañang issued the decision reinstating the Dumanjug couple on May 29.
Meanwhile, Ricky Bulahan and Loloy Cuizon, who were installed as mayor and vice mayor, respectively, in an acting capacity, made a statement circulated to the different department heads of Bonifacio town and all national agencies to fully support and honor the new suspension order of the SP.
This was despite the fact Bulahan and Cuizon have not yet received the copy of the implementing order from the Department of Interior and Local Government, nor from the office of the SP or the office of the governor, and Malacañang itself.
Oaminal stressed that the new suspension order stemmed from a different case filed this year allegedly for betrayal of public trust in relation to Section 20 of the Local Government Code, specifically Paragraph b, c, and h.
"And one of these is the usurpation of public functions. In short, what was implemented by the governor on May 30, when I issued the implementing order, was already a case of 01-23 which was filed in 2023, no longer having any relation to the cases filed in 2022, so this order was properly served," said Oaminal, a lawyer.
Tension occurred when the suspended town mayor allegedly padlocked the office of the mayor and stayed there for about 16 days, thereby preventing the authorities from delivering the suspension order.
"Unfortunately, si suspended Mayor Samson and Vice Mayor Evelyn Dumanjug, ilang gi-padlocked ang upisina sa mayor,
didto sila nagpundo, and then wala na gi-receive ang maong order (Unfortunately, suspended Mayor Samson and Vice Mayor Evelyn Dumanjug padlocked the mayor’s office where they holed out, thus preventing anyone from receiving the order),” explained Oaminal.
This prompted the provincial government to activate the Incident Command System (ICS) to respond and manage the peace and order situation at the Bonifacio Municipal Hall that may be put in serious jeopardy.
Oaminal said the order was properly served by leaving the copy to the office of the mayor, and all the department heads were furnished with copies. The order was also posted on the municipality's bulletin board, and all concerned national agencies.
As tension developed, Oaminal issued Special Order No. HSO-053 on June 1 addressed to Misamis Occidental police chief Police Col. Marlon Quimno directing the latter to suppress the disorder to preserve peace and order of the municipality and force the Dumanjugs and other unauthorized personnel to vacate the offices so that Bulahan and Cuizon could deliver services smoothly in Bonifacio.
The ICS, which was activated through Executive Order No. 39, is composed of the PNP, Philippine Army, DILG, Bureau of Fire Protection, and other government agencies.
The team successfully extracted Mayor Dumanjug from the office that they occupied on June 16.
Based on the viral video during the ICS operation, Mayor Dumanjug got an opportunity to ventilate the issues and concerns in the town.
Accordingly, Mayor Dumajug was allegedly pointed a gun, forcibly taken to a wheelchair, bound, his face covered with a malong, and injected with something he does not know. He was brought to the PDRRMO rescue vehicle.
Joey Ampong, executive officer of the Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction Management Office (PDRRMO), denied such malicious, unfounded allegations, saying they are not authorized to bring firearms.
Ampong said that as an experienced police officer, he knows the process. “It's also for his safety because maybe later, if he suddenly jumps, we will be accused of pushing him,” he said.
DILG Misamis Occidental Director Pableo Benitez Jr. said that they have not favored or biased as alleged by Tambulig, Misamis Occidental Mayor Charlotte Panal in implementing the law against the Dumanjugs.