Despite change in admin, Ombudsman to hang on

With a new administration about to take over, the office of Ombudsman Merceditas Gutierrez on Wednesday night asserted her term ends in 2012, as prescribed by the 1987 Philippine Constitution. Gutierrez, who was appointed by President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo in December 2005, would leave her office in December 2012 because the Charter gives her office a fixed term of seven years. Earlier, Quezon fourth district Representative and Liberal Party spokesperson Erin Tañada told Newsbreak magazine that the looming new administration of Sen. Benigno Aquino III might have to find out ways to appoint a new Ombudsman because of Gutierrez’s perceived close ties to President Arroyo. The camp of Aquino, who ran using an anti-corruption platform, believes the Ombudsman's office under Gutierrez would put to waste its anti-corruption efforts. But on Wednesday night, a statement on the Office of the Ombudsman’s website quoted Assistant Ombudsman Jose de Jesus as saying that "those who insist that [Gutierrez’s] term was up already [should] raise the same before the proper forum and not to make a play out of it in the media." De Jesus added that Gutierrez would only leave if a "competent authority should say her term has indeed ended, they can be sure she will abide and comply with the verdict. Otherwise…the Ombudsman will continue to perform her task…up to the end of her term in 2012." Section 11, Article XI of the 1987 Constitution provides that "the Ombudsman and his deputies shall serve for a term of seven years without reappointment." Further, Republic Act No. 6770, also known as the Ombudsman Act of 1989, says: "The Ombudsman and his deputies, including the special prosecutor, shall serve for a term of seven years without reappointment." Gutierrez, the batchmate of First Gentleman Jose Miguel Arroyo at the Ateneo de Manila University College of Law, has been accused of sitting on controversial cases that involved the First Family. Gutierrez has since denied the allegations. Her office allegedly tried to protect powerful people connected with the Arroyo administration, such as former Agriculture undersecretary Jocelyn “Joc-Joc" Bolante who allegedly maneuvered the diversion of P728-million in fertilizer funds to the campaign kitty of President Arroyo in 2004. [See: Ombudsman Gutierrez focusing on small fry, ignoring big fish - Marcelo] In September last year, the House of Representatives’ justice committee, composed mostly of Arroyo allies, dismissed an impeachment complaint against Gutierrez due to insufficiency in substance. The complaint, filed in March 2009 by Senate President Jovito Salonga and 30 other civil society leaders, charged Gutierrez with betrayal of public trust and culpable violation of the 1987 Constitution in the handling of several controversies involving the First Family and President Arroyo’s allies. These issues include the Mega Pacific and corruption case against former Elections chair Benjamin Abalos Sr., the World Bank mess regarding the sanctioning of three Filipino construction firms over alleged collusion, and the fertilizer fund scam, among others. — with Sophia Dedace/RSJ/LBG, GMANews.TV