■ EX-MAYOR FACES CRIMINAL CASE BEFORE SANDIGANBAYAN

Former Dumanjug mayor Efren Guntrano Gica is facing a criminal case before the Sandiganbayan for allegedly tampering with a restaurant receipt amounting to P11,435 to bloat the amount to P21,435 in 2014. The case for malversation of public funds, three counts of falsification of official documents and for violation of the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act against Gica was raffled to the Sandiganbayan’s 7th Division on June 29. Gica, in an interview, said they have filed a motion seeking to dismiss the case against him. He argued that the case should be filed in the Regional Trial Court, and not Sandiganbayan, since the complaint was filed when he was still the vice mayor. Graft Investigator Portia Pacquiao had ordered Gica dismissed from the service for serious dishonesty and grave misconduct. The ombudsman ordered the cancellation of Gica’s civil service eligibility and barred him from working again in government. The case stemmed from the complaint filed by former mayor Nelson Garcia, who accused Gica of tampering with a Ding Qua Qua receipt for P11,435 so it would appear to be P21,435 last Aug.12, 2014. Gica said that he could not be held liable for malversation of public funds since he had no custody of public funds as the then vice mayor. Gica said that the cash advances that he obtained were all used for payments of meals during the barangay assembly of the Association of Local Budget Officers seminar in Cebu City. But Pacquiao said that Gica falsified the liquidation report, purchase order and the Ding Qua Qua official receipt “for the purpose of concealing his act in obtaining P10,000 for his personal benefit.”