BY GEROME DALIPE IV
ILOILO City – Talks are rife that former city mayor Jed Patrick Mabilog may seek executive clemency to allow him to run for public office once again.
Mabilog, who fled the country in 2017 after being linked to illegal drugs by former President Rodrigo Duterte, was initially dismissed from office by the Office of the Ombudsman over alleged unexplained wealth.
The Court of Appeals (CA) affirmed Mabilog’s dismissal from service and perpetual disqualification from holding public office.
In a resolution, the CA former special 16th division affirmed its August 2018 ruling dismissing Mabilog’s motion to reverse the Office of the Ombudsman’s decision finding him guilty of grave misconduct, serious dishonesty, and conduct prejudicial to the best interest of the service.
In 2021, however, the appeals court reversed the lifetime ban of Mabilog from public office and absolved him in an administrative case relative to charges of ill-gotten wealth.
In a 22-page decision, the CA 19th Division granted Mabilog’s petition questioning the anti-graft office’s August 29, 2017 decision and February 8, 2018 order that found him guilty of serious dishonesty.
The CA also called out the Ombudsman for ignoring evidence that explained the net worth increase.
The appellate court gave weight to Mabilog’s 2013 tax returns, which were accompanied by an affidavit of attestation executed by Mabilog’s wife – who had a lucrative employment as corporate comptroller in Canada – and a certificate of authentication issued by the Philippine vice-consul in Canada.
“Absent any intent to commit a wrong, and having accounted for the source of the ‘unexplained wealth,’ one cannot be adjudged guilty of dishonesty,” the CA ruling stated.
Executive clemency, if granted, could clear any legal impediment for Mabilog to reenter the political arena, allowing him to regain eligibility to hold public office.
Section 40(b) of the Local Government Code provides that those removed from office as a result of an administrative case are disqualified from holding public office.
Section 19, Article VII of the Constitution also provides that the President may grant reprieves, commutations, and pardons, and remit fines and forfeitures, after conviction by final judgment.
Executive clemency is granted exclusively within the sound discretion of the President and is exercised to prevent a miscarriage of justice or correct a manifest injustice.
In a case decided by the Supreme Court, the tribunal ruled that executive clemency applies to administrative cases.
“It is our considered view that if the President can grant reprieves, commutations, and pardons, and remit fines and forfeitures in criminal cases, with much more reason can she grant executive clemency in administrative cases, which are less serious than criminal offenses,” the SC held in the case Llamas vs Osbos.
However, the high court clarified that the President’s grant of executive clemency in administrative cases refers only to all administrative cases in the executive branch, not in the judicial or legislative branches of the government.
But former city councilor Plaridel Nava II, a long-time critic of Mabilog, doubts if Mabilog could still secure a presidential pardon due to time constraints and rigid requirements, which include publication in a newspaper for 15 days under the existing law and hearings on the merit of the petition for executive clemency.
“He (Mabilog) can file his COC (certificate of candidacy) but for sure I will file a petition to disqualify him for various legal impediments,” said Nava.
Likewise, Nava vowed to refute Mabilog’s statements during the House’s quad-committee hearing this Wednesday.
“I will not permit him to rewrite our history in the fight against illegal drugs. There were major drug lords in the city during his incumbency. He cannot feign ignorance of the magnitude of the illegal drug trade,” said Nava.
The former councilor said he may testify in the Senate with the committee of Sen. Ronald “Bato” Dela Rosa after Mabilog’s testimony in the House’s quad-committee./PN
