Transportation Secretary Arthur Tugade said Friday the Office of the Ombudsman has ordered the preventive suspension of Mactan-Cebu International Airport Authority (MCIAA) acting general manager Glenn Napuli for six months to pave the way for an investigation.
“Liwanagin ko lang ho na yung preventive suspension ho ay hindi ibig sabihin guilty si Glenn. Ito ho ang part ng proseso na kung saan mag-imbistiga at magkaroon ng determinasyon kung may pagkukulang o nagkasala (Let me just clarify that the preventive suspension does not mean that Glenn is guilty. This is the part of the process where an investigation would be conducted and it would be determined it there was any shortcoming or wrongdoing),” Tugade said in a radio interview here.
Department of Transportation (DOTr) Undersecretary Reinier Paul Yebra transmitted the Ombudsman’s order as the anti-graft office is investigating Napuli for grave misconduct, gross neglect of duty, and conduct prejudicial to the best interest of the service.
The transmittal was addressed to Julius Neri Jr., who has been appointed by President Rodrigo Duterte as the new MCIAA general manager. Neri’s appointment was relayed through a letter dated July 7, 2021 addressed to the airport’s board of directors.
Tugade said he is cooperating with the anti-graft body in the investigation on the different agreements between the MCIAA and the GMR Megawide Cebu Airport Corp., the private firm managing the airport.
He, however, said he was “happy” with the performance of Napuli.
Tugade noted that under his watch as acting general manager since December last year following the suspension of former MCIAA general manager Steve Dicdican, Napuli was able to work for the expansion of the airport’s taxiway, emergency, and phase 1 of the parallel runway.
“Nagulat po ako sa order ng Ombudsman kaya nga ba’t pipilitin at pipilitin ko na makipagtulungan upang sa ganun, sabi nga sa English, truth shall come out (I was surprised by the Ombudsman’s order, that’s why I will cooperate so that, as they say in English, truth shall come out),” he said.
Napuli, in a statement posted in his social media account, said the preventive suspension stemmed from a letter from the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) requesting copies of contracts between the airport and the firm managing the airport facilities.
“Now the NBI filed a case against me in the Office of the Ombudsman and as a result, the Ombudsman is now suspending me because I did not give them documents that we don’t have. My message to NBI and Ombudsman is that I will never manufacture or fabricate documents for you,” he said.
In a statement released by the DOTr, Tugade urged the affected quarters to not speculate and trust the legal process.
Tugade came to Cebu on Friday to inaugurate the 129-km. stretch of the Metro Cebu Bike Lane Network covering the cities of Cebu, Mandaue, Lapu-Lapu, and Talisay.
The project is part of the DOTr’s active transport program that seeks to establish safe lanes for bikers in Metro Davao, Cebu, and Manila.
About 80 modernized public utility jeepneys were also launched during his visit to Cebu.
Source: Philippines News Agency