Buted seeks TRO from Supreme Court
SUSPENDED Pangasinan State University president Dexter Buted has turned to the Supreme Court in a bid to reverse the Court of Appeals’ earlier denial of his appeal for a temporary restraining order on his suspension.
Buted, who was suspended by the Office of the Ombudsman, said his case is not only his personal battle but a fight of all heads of government office to sustain the doctrine that the head of a government office has the power and authority to transfer employees, and should the latter refuse, the government head has the power to suspend the erring employee.
In his pleading, he said the PSU board of regents approved the transfer of Ricardo Tapia, a teacher in mathematics at the PSU School of Fisheries in Binmaley, to the PSU School of Engineering in Urdaneta City, he being an engineer.
Buted pointed out that there were eight faculty members who were transferred but only Tapia refused to be reassigned and instead appealed to the Civil Service Commission regional office to keep his Binmaley post.
While Tapia was awaiting the resolution of his appeal, Buted said he reminded Tapia repeatedly to report to his class at PSU Binmaley.
Instead, Tapia would log-in with the security guard at PSU Binmaley campus every 9 a.m. and logs out 11 a.m. but never met his class for three months, Buted said.
“How can he expect to be paid his salary if he refused to report to his class?” Buted asked.
Buted also submitted supporting documents to rebut Tapia’s claim that he was only receiving P2,000-monthly salary but hid the fact that the amount he cited as net of deductions to payment of his “multiple loans”.
He refuted Tapia’s reason for resisting the transfer, claiming he is a PWD and therefore unable to commute to the Urdaneta Campus daily from his residence in Bugallon because of his disability.
Buted said Tapia is able to drive a motorcycle and including a four-wheel vehicle that a disabled person could not possibly do.
He said he hoped it will not take the SC nine months to decide on the merits of his case. (Nora Dominguez)
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