BACOLOD City— Mayor Greg Gasataya has directed City Veterinarian Dr. Maria Agueda Trinidad Dela Torre to explain why 39 sets of African Swine Fever (ASF) polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test kits—worth P2,457,000—expired on November 30, 2025.
City Administrator Atty. Mark Mayo said in a media briefing on December 3 that the show-cause order, signed by Mayor Gasataya, was served to Dela Torre on December 2. She has been given five days from receipt of the order to submit her written explanation.
In the directive, the mayor asked Dela Torre to justify, in accordance with the 2025 Rules on Administrative Cases in the Civil Service (2025 RACCS), why no administrative disciplinary action should be taken against her in connection with the reported expired test kits.
The test kits were part of the ASF PCR supplies procured by the city on November 8, 2023, under Purchase Order No. BAC-23-06-0829.
Mayor Gasataya noted that under Executive Order No. 049, series of 2022, the City Veterinarian was designated as vice chairperson of the Task Force on ASF— the body tasked to oversee the custody, management, and utilization of the test kits for surveillance, monitoring, and control activities in Bacolod City.
He added that the City Veterinary Office (CVO), headed by Dela Torre, served as the implementing office responsible for the procurement and proper management of the ASF test kits.
The mayor stressed that the expiration of a substantial quantity of test kits without being fully and timely used suggests possible lapses in planning, monitoring, and implementation of ASF testing activities. Such lapses, he said, may constitute gross neglect of duty, inefficiency in the performance of official duties, or conduct prejudicial to the best interest of the service, as well as possible violations of government rules on the proper care and utilization of government property.
“Failure to submit the required sworn explanation within the prescribed period shall be considered a waiver of your right to comment,” the order stated. It added that the preliminary evaluation may proceed based solely on available records and could result in the issuance of a formal charge under the 2025 RACCS./PN
