CITY OF SAN FERNANDO – Veritably throwing everything at her, including the proverbial kitchen sink, the sangguniang panlungsod here on Monday declared the city accountant as persona non grata.
Resolution No. 2020-103 excoriated Maria Gisel P. Rivera, city accountant, for “grave misconduct, conduct unbecoming a public officer/employee, conduct prejudicial to the to the interest of public service and abuse of authority.”
This, after Rivera “uttered defamatory statements against the members of the [SP] thereby besmirching its reputation and destroying public respect.”
A national reputation, the SP said, was grounded on its recognition for three consecutive years as “Most Outstanding SP of the Philippines.”
From the “whereases” of the resolution, it appeared that the city council twice failing to table for discussion the Supplemental Budget No. 3 that Mayor Edwin Santiago conveyed to the council served as provocation to Rivera’s “unbecoming conduct.”
On April 28, a day after SB No. 3 was not included in the council’s “order of business” a second time, Rivera “upon reaching her office, furiously and disgustingly, did then and there, willfully and feloniously uttered in a very loud, malicious and scandalous manner, in front of city employees in her office with intent to defame and besmirch the reputation and discrediting and ridiculing the members of [SP]: “PUTA NAY DANA RENG ANAK PUTANG KONSEHAL A REN. ANIMAL LANG TALAGA. ALI DE INAPRUBAHAN IN SUPPLEMENTAL NO. 3 PURO YANG COVID ITA, NANUNG BURI DANG MALYARI?” (Printed as it appeared in the resolution).
Seeing Janyn Carreon, a daughter of councilor Ariel C. Carreon employed in her department, Rivera “confronted her and uttered – AGYANG ANAK KA PANG KONSEHAL, ANAK PUTA LANG TALAGA.” (Again, printed as it appeared in the resolution.)
It was councilor Carreon that sponsored the resolution that was unanimously seconded and approved by the council.
Rivera’s attitude, the resolution said, was a “blatant manifestation of disrespect to the great and reputable institution of the [SP] and its members, as well as her superiors, being elected officials.”
The resolution lamented that the “defamatory statements of a mere employee against all the persons of the Legislative Body of the city government has adversely has (sic) adversely affected the independence of the decision-making and integrity of these duly elected officials.”
The “malicious utterances caused sleepless nights, mental anguish, wounded feelings, moral and social embarrassment, defame and besmirch the reputation tothe office of the [SP], its members and families.”
Copies of the resolution, signed by SP secretary Avelina Lacanilao-Lagman, were set to be sent to the Office of the Mayor, all departments of the city, the Civil Service Commission, and the Philippine Institute of Certified Public Accountants for their “information, guidance and implementation.”
