SECOND DIVISION
[A.M. No. P-10-2812. January 11, 2016.]
ANONYMOUS, petitioner, vs. CLERK OF COURT V ZENALFIE M. CUENCO, COURT INTERPRETER CHRISTIAN V. CABANILLA, COURT STENOGRAPHERS FILIPINAS M. YABUT AND SIONY ABCEDE, AND LOCALLY FUNDED EMPLOYEE MS. ALELI DE GUZMAN, ALL OF THE REGIONAL TRIAL COURT, BRANCH 72, MALABON CITY, AND OFFICER VANISSA L. ASIS OF THE PHILIPPINE MEDIATION CENTER, respondents.
NOTICE
Sirs/Mesdames :
Please take notice that the Court, Second Division, issued a Resolution dated 11 January 2016 which reads as follows:
"A.M. No. P-10-2812: ANONYMOUS v. CLERK OF COURT V ZENALFIE M. CUENCO, COURT INTERPRETER CHRISTIAN V. CABANILLA, COURT STENOGRAPHERS FILIPINAS M. YABUT AND SIONY ABCEDE, AND LOCALLY FUNDED EMPLOYEE MS. ALELI DE GUZMAN, ALL OF THE REGIONAL TRIAL COURT, BRANCH 72, MALABON CITY, AND OFFICER VANISSA L. ASIS OF THE PHILIPPINE MEDIATION CENTER
On April 13, 2010, the Office of the Court Administrator received a letter-complaint from "Taongbayan ng Pilipinas" informing the Court Administrator of anomalous transactions in Branch 72 of the Regional Trial Court of Malabon City. 1 The letter directly implicated Clerk of Court Zenalfie M. Cuenco, Court Stenographers Filipinas M. Yabut and Siony Abcede, Aleli De Guzman, and Vanissa L. Asis. 2 The letter alleged many acts of employee misconduct, including dishonesty in reporting attendance. 3
The Office of the Court Administrator requested Executive Judge Emmanuel D. Laurea (Executive Judge Laurea) to conduct a discreet investigation on the allegations in the letter. 4 In Executive Judge Laurea's report, Court Interpreter Christian V. Cabanilla was identified as another employee referred to in the anonymous letter-complaint. 5
After Executive Judge Laurea rendered a report, the Office of the Court Administrator also sent a team to investigate the matter further and to conduct an inventory of exhibits in criminal cases pending before Branch 72. 6
In the Office of the Court Administrator's Investigation Report 7 dated August 19, 2010, the Office of the Court Administrator also found, aside from the employee-respondents identified in the anonymous letter-complaint, irregularities in the attendance records of Sheriff Rodolfo V. Tongco (Sheriff Tongco).
The first irregularity found was Sheriff Tongco's lack of an entry in his Daily Time Record for July 12, 2010. However, the court's logbook showed that he arrived at 7:50 a.m. with no subsequent log in nor log out for the remainder of the day. 8 The Office of the Court Administrator noted similar irregularities in Sheriff Tongco's attendance on April 26, 28, 30, June 4, 10, 11, 16, and July 12, all in 2010.
During the investigation, Sheriff Tongco cooperated with the Office of the Court Administrator by executing a Sinumpaang Salaysay dated August 18, 2010. 9 He confirmed allegations that Court Stenographer Siony Abcede never acted as a stenographer despite her appointment as one, and that Court Interpreter Christian V. Cabanilla was a full-time nursing student who missed work hours due to his coursework. 10
In the First Indorsement dated August 23, 2011, the Office of the Court Administrator required respondents to comment on the Office of the Court Administrator's Investigation Report. 11
In handwritten letters dated January 3, 2011 and January 2, 2012, 12 Mrs. Jeanette A. Tongco, Sheriff Tongco's wife, informed the Office of the Court Administrator that Sheriff Tongco passed away on June 30, 2011. 13 He died of liver cancer, and his ailment and death have caused a huge financial burden on the family. 14 Mrs. Tongco requested for a speedy disposition of this case. According to her, a favorable disposition of the case would allow her access to the survivorship benefits of her husband, which would, in turn, help in the financial situation of the Tongco Family. 15 ETHIDa
In the Memorandum dated January 26, 2015, the Office of the Court Administrator recommended that the complaint against Sheriff Tongco be dismissed. 16 The Office of the Court Administrator recognized that Sheriff Tongco was not given an opportunity to comment on the charges against him. Hence, he was denied due process. 17
In a letter dated September 15, 2015, Mrs. Tongco reiterated her request for the speedy disposition of her husband's case. 18
The issue before this court is whether the administrative case should be dismissed with respect to Sheriff Tongco.
We resolve to adopt the recommendation of the Office of the Court Administrator and dismiss the charges against Sheriff Tongco. Sheriff Tongco is not among the original respondents of this administrative case. The Office of the Court Administrator correctly pointed out that he was not accorded due process in the investigation. Government employees are entitled to due process when facing administrative charges, and included in substantive due process is the opportunity to be heard. This court previously ruled that a summary dismissal of an employee without due process is considered null and void. 19
The irregularities in Sheriff Tongco's attendance may be out of inadvertence. The Office of the Court Administrator's investigation did not show evidence that Sheriff Tongco was absent or tardy on the days noted, contrary to what is reflected in the attendance logbook of the trial court.
The charges against Sheriff Tongco should be dismissed because of the absence of due process and for lack of substantive evidence to show that he committed administrative misconduct. However, the administrative case with respect to the other respondents persists because they are not similarly situated with Sheriff Tongco.
WHEREFORE, the case with respect to Sheriff Rodolfo V. Tongco is DISMISSED.
SO ORDERED."
Very truly yours,
(SGD.) MA. LOURDES C. PERFECTODivision Clerk of Court
Footnotes
1. Rollo, pp. 3-4, Undated Letter addressed to Court Administrator Jose Midas P. Marquez.
2. Id.
3. Id. at 3.
4. Id. at 15, 1st Indorsement dated April 21, 2010.
5. Id. at 6-7, Report dated May 26, 2010.
6. Id. at 1472.
7. Id. at 638-657.
8. Id. at 640, Memorandum dated August 19, 2010.
9. Id. at 770-771.
10. Id., Sinumpaang Salaysay.
11. Id. at 635, Resolution dated October 5, 2011. The Resolution held the submission of the Office of the Court Administrator's evaluation, report, and recommendation until respondents complied with the Office of the Court Administrator's First Indorsement dated August 23, 2011.
12. Id. at 1225-1227. However, both letters were received by the Office of the Court Administrator on January 2 and 3, 2012.
13. Id. at 1228, Photocopy of a Certificate of Death of Rodolfo Velasquez Tongco.
14. Id.
15. Id. at 1225-1227.
16. Id. at 1506, Memorandum dated January 26, 2015.
17. Id. at 1503.
18. Id. at 1511.
19. Macabuhay v. Manuel, 189 Phil. 635 (1978) [Per J. Concepcion, Jr., En Banc].