Ombudsman suspends Marikina city engineer and six other officials for serious misconduct

The case stems from allegations that city officials in Marikina demanded bribes from plaintiffs to speed up the approval of building permits.

MANILA, Philippines – The Office of the Ombudsman has sentenced Marikina City Engineer and Construction Official Kennedy Sueno and six other officials of his department to a six-month precautionary suspension as they face administrative charges of serious misconduct.

The case is based on allegations that they demanded bribes from plaintiffs in order to speed up the issuing of building permits.

The order, signed by Ombudsman Samuel Martires on June 5 and published on Monday, June 10, directed Marikina City Mayor Marcelino Teodoro to enforce the suspension order and reminded him that failure to comply could lead to disciplinary action.

“This Office finds sufficient grounds for issuing an order of preventive suspension of the respondents … taking into account the fact that there is strong evidence of their guilt. Their continued presence in office could prejudice the investigation into the case against them,” the resolution said.

Who are the parties to the proceedings?

In addition to Sueno, the following persons are defendants in this case and subject to the stay order:

• Chief of the Enforcement Division, Romeo Gutierrez Jr.
• Building Inspector Marlito Poquiz
• Electrical Inspector Alex Copreros
• Engineer Mark de Joya
• Master electrician Manuel Santos
• Administrative Assistant Abigail Joy Santiago

The plaintiffs are Brian Geronimo Torres and Agnes Tablante Torres.

The Ombudsman noted Mayor Teodoro’s alleged involvement in the unusual plot, but did not name him as a defendant in the case.

What exactly was the accusation?

In August 2021, the Torreses, who live in Twin River Subdivision in Barangay Parang, Marikina City, applied to the city government for a permit to build their house but had difficulty obtaining the papers.

They alleged that officials of the city’s engineering office pressured them to pay P430,000 in fees, but they did not receive a permit until seven months later, in March 2022.

In April of the same year, they had to stop construction after the city administration revoked their permit.

The couple said that after they began building a fence in November 2021, they faced a series of harassments: they received two fines, were asked to change the construction plan, received a notice of lack of a fire safety certificate, were forced to seek an exemption from the city council for the two-meter distance, and received numerous visits from inspectors.

The Torreses appealed to the Department of Public Works and Highways, which then blocked the Marikina City Government’s revocation notice against the couple’s construction work.

In August 2023, five months after the couple completed construction of their home, the Torreses were informed that the revocation order was still in effect.

Agnes Torres was later arrested and brought to court for allegedly violating national building regulations, but the prosecutor later withdrew the charges after the city council granted the plaintiffs a one-meter distance on their property.

“The case against plaintiff Agnes clearly revolved around harassment and malicious dealings by municipal engineer Sueno, building inspector Poquiz and electrical inspector Copreros,” the ombudsman said.

The Ombudsman also pointed out the alleged solicitation of financial rewards by the Marikina City Government.

“The pervasive nature of this corruption undermines the fairness and transparency of government practices and ultimately undermines public confidence in the integrity of its governance,” the order continues. – Rappler.com