CHED Commissioner, 3 Others Ordered Dismissed

(UPDATED) Malacañang has ordered the dismissal of Commission on Higher Education (CHED) Commissioner Ronald Adamat and three others over an alleged irregularity in the reappointment of the president of Pangasinan State University (PSU) in 2018.

In a 10-page decision obtained by The Philippine STAR Friday, June 24, Executive Secretary Salvador Medialdea found Adamat and three other ex-officio members of the PSU Board of Regents (BOR) administratively liable for grave misconduct and other related charges.

Also ordered dismissed were Nestor Rillon, National Economic and Development Authority Region 1 director; Armando Ganal, Department of Science and Technology Region 1 director; and Lucrecio Alviar Jr., retired regional director of the Department of Agriculture Region 1.

Medialdea agreed with the findings of the Presidential Anti-Corruption Commission (PACC), which recommended the dismissal from service of the four officials.

Adamat, in a message to The Philippine STAR, said he would file a motion for reconsideration once he receives a copy of the decision.

"For the record, we are one with the administration in its drive to rid the government of erring officials. They have no place in government and are not fit to deliver public service. We are, however, innocent of the charges hurled by the complainants," he added in a separate statement.

"In the performance of our official duties, we are always guided by the rule of law and pertinent rules and regulations. For this reason, we are confident that the truth will manifest itself in the resolution of the issues so that our good names will be cleared of all charges," he added.

Ganal said he has also not received a copy of the decision, adding that he and his colleagues are in coordination with the Office of the Solicitor General for the appropriate move on the matter.

The case stemmed from the complaint filed against the PSU BOR officials for the alleged “improper” reappointment of PSU president Dexter Buted, inaction on the ombudsman’s suspension order on Buted and the supposed failure to create a search committee six months before the end of the term of the university president.

They were also charged for reappointing beyond the two-term limit two private sector representatives to the PSU BOR.

Complainants alleged that the PSU BOR violated a CHED memorandum order stating that a president of a state university or college undergoing evaluation for a second term “must not have been convicted of any administrative offense or crime.”

At the time of his reappointment in 2018, Buted was serving a nine-month suspension after he was found administratively liable by the ombudsman for a separate case.

In response to the notices issued by the PACC, the PSU BOR – through the Office of the Solicitor General – contended that Buted’s reappointment did not violate the CHED order since the ombudsman’s suspension order was not yet final.

Buted’s motion for reconsideration was denied with finality by the Supreme Court only in March 2019.

Adamat, Rillon, Ganal and Alviar also denied liability as regards the extension of the term of the two private sector representatives to the PSU BOR, noting that the resolution merely placed them in holdover capacity.

But in his decision, Medialdea said the appointments made by the PSU BOR “despite legal impediments constitute grave misconduct.”

“As found by the PACC, the ombudsman decision finding Buted administratively liable for oppression should have disqualified Buted from the search process,” read the decision dated June 10.

“The pendency of Buted’s motion for reconsideration before the Supreme Court likewise would not remove the legal impediment to Buted’s reappointment,” it added.

On the reappointment of the two private sector representatives, Medialdea said the intent of the PSU BOR Board Resolution was to reappoint the two for another term.

“If the intention was to extend their term in a hold-over capacity, the PSU BOR should have indicated that (they) shall only hold office until their successors shall have been appointed and qualified instead of providing a fixed term therein. To accept the ‘extension of term’ argument would be tantamount to allowing a circumvention of the two-term limit,” read the ruling.

Medialdea clarified that Adamat cannot be held liable for this specific issue as he was not yet a member of the PSU BOR when the resolution was issued.

But he ruled the CHED official is administratively liable over the matter involving the reappointment of Buted.

“This Office agrees with the PACC that the acts of respondents Adamat, Rillon, Ganal and Alviar as members of the PSU BOR have given the impression that the PSU BOR utterly disregards the express guidelines set by the CHED to select qualified and competent officers of PSU,” said Medialdea.

“In turn, the appointment of unqualified officers has tarnished the image and integrity of the PSU BOR as the highest policy-making body and the entire university as an academic institution of higher learning,” he added.

Rillon, Ganal and Alviar were also held accountable for simple neglect of duty for the inordinate delay of the implementation of the ombudsman’s suspension order against the university president.

With Alviar’s retirement, Medialdea said the accessory penalties shall be imposed against him, including cancellation of eligibility, perpetual disqualification from public office, barring from taking civil service examination and forfeiture of all retirement benefits, except accrued leave credits.

(This article was originally published on the print edition of The Philippine STAR on June 25, 2022. This version has been updated to reflect the statement of CHED Commissioner Ronald Adamat and DOST Region 1 director Armando Ganal.)