OMB dismisses 3 NIA officials in Bukidnon for ‘fertilizer scam’

The Office of the Ombudsman (OMB) has ordered the dismissal from service of three National Irrigation Authority (NIA) officials assigned to the Bukidnon Provincial Irrigation Office due to their involvement in the anomalous procurement of fertilizers worth R9,447,200.00 back in 2009.

The dismissed officials were identified yesterday by the OMB as NIA Division Manager Editha Abdon, Administrative and Finance Head Adelina Calonge, and Principal Engineer Leonila Tenestrante. They were found guilty of gross neglect of duty.

Aside from dismissal from government service, they are also perpetually disqualified from holding public office, and their retirement benefits are forfeited. They are also barred from taking the civil service exam, and their civil service eligibility is cancelled.

Ombudsman investigators discovered that in June 2009, the NIA Regional Office (RO) received R10 million for the implementation of the Department of Agriculture’s (DA’s) bio-organic fertilizer program.

Using this fund, the NIA RO purchased thousands of liters of organic fertilizers and pesticides from 3K & C Enterprises, Dating Bayan Agro Industrial Corporation, MLB Enterprises, and EMP Feed Mix Manufacturing.

However, investigators discovered that the suppliers failed to meet the required product specifications and quality standards.

At the same time, the projects were awarded without the benefit of a public bidding. More irregularities surfaced when investigators learned that supplier 3K is a business firm owned by Regina Salazar, wife of then NIA Administrator Carlos Salazar.

Lastly, no post-qualification proceedings were undertaken to ensure the capability of the suppliers to undertake the project.