‘DILG might serve`order vs Oca today’

By NITZ ARANCON
Correspondent

CITY hall found itself racing against time again to prevent the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) from serving a three-month suspension order against Mayor Oscar Moreno and two other officials in connection with a case for grave abuse of authority and grave misconduct.

Maricel Rivera, city hall spokesperson, said they were hoping that the Court of Appeals (CA) would grant the motion of Moreno for a temporary restraining order (TRO) because of information that the DILG would serve the suspension order against the mayor, city accountant Beda Joy Elot and city budget officer Percy Salazar.

“DILG might serve the suspension order for OSM (Moreno) tomorrow. We are praying for the TRO to be released soonest,” reads a text message sent out to media by Rivera late afternoon yesterday.

Moreno, Elot and Salazar were held liable by the Office of the Ombudsman for the lease of a house in Barangay Macasandig for the training of boxers under city hall’s sports program.

Puntod barangay chairman Marvin Beja, who filed the case, alleged that the officials caused the release of P35 thousand a month from  Aug. 1, 2013 to Dec. 31, 2013 to pay former provincial board member Jimmy Caiña for the use of his Macasandig property.

Beja said the lease was made without the approval of the city council.

Moreno, Elot and Salazar appealed the ombudsman’s ruling, and in July 12, filed a petition for certiorari before the CA in an effort to prevent the DILG from serving the suspension order. They also asked the CA to issue a   TRO or a status quo ante order, and a writ of preliminary injunction against the ombudsman’s order.