Senior Undersecretary Domingo Panganiban (File photo)
MANILA – The Department of Agriculture (DA) is ready to face the complaint filed against Senior Undersecretary Domingo Panganiban before the Office of the Ombudsman, an official said on Tuesday.
DA Assistant Secretary Rex Estoperez said they already received the complaint filed on Monday by two groups questioning Panganiban’s order to import 440,000 metric tons of refined sugar last February.
“As for the filing of cases before Ombudsman, that’s their job (to accept complaints) and our people have the rights whatever their complaints are in the Ombudsman,” he said in an interview with reporters.
“We are to clarify things. We are ready to answer kung anuman ang pangangailangan ng ating Ombudsman para maclarify din. Ang sa amin lang naman, maging transparent lang dapat ang atin pong proseso (whatever the Ombudsman needs to clarify. For us, we want the process to be transparent),” he added.
Estoperez said he is optimistic that Panganiban will be able to clear his name before the Ombudsman.
“Definitely. Wang tinatago ang DA kay (The DA is not hiding anything about) Senior Undersecretary Panganiban. We are ready to face kung anuman ang requirements ng ating (whatever the requirements of our) Ombudsman. We are transparent,” he said.
He said the DA and Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin had already answered the issue of sugar importation in the previous Senate hearings.
“In fact, Executive Secretary Bersamin, sinabi nya na Senior Undersecretary is just following orders from the President through Executive Secretary Bersamin,” Estoperez said.
“If you look at the flow of that order from the President to the Executive Secretary to senior Undersecretary Panganiban. That was cleared during the Senate hearing chaired by Senator Francis Tolentino,” he added.
He said “all what we do” in the DA are based on trust.
On Monday, the National Congress of Unions in the Sugar Industry Agrarian Reform Beneficiaries' Council and the Alternatiba ng Masa Party-list filed complaint against Panganiban, accusing him of usurpation of official functions and violation of Section 3(e) of the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act. (PNA)
