Malasiqui mayor faces more raps
LINGAYEN–Mayor Armando Domantay of Malasiqui finds himself in bigger legal trouble as more cases have been filed against him.
An administrative case against him has been filed before the Sangguniang Panlalawigan (SP) and a separate complaint against him and others, mostly his relatives, was lodged before the Ombudsman.
The administrative case for grave misconduct, grave abuse of power and authority, oppression, dishonesty and conduct prejudicial to the best interest of public service was filed on August 17 jointly by former Vice Governor Oscar Lambino and Mario Armas, both residents of Malasiqui.
Meanwhile, the complaint before the Ombudsman, which was received on August 7, was filed against Domantay, et al by the Manila-based cause-oriented organization Citizens Movement Against Corruption, Crime, Illegal Drugs and Gambling, represented by Renta Pe & Associates.
The administrative case against Domantay before the SP stems not only for entering a controversial lease contract with the Magic Group of Companies for a 1,100 sq. meter lot owned by the municipal government but also for allowing Magic to extend its construction to the Binalbalolong River.
Domantay was also accused by Lambino and Armas of demolishing and desecrating the monument of Gat Andres Bonifacio and for mangling Dr. Jose P. Rizal’s statue without the benefit of public hearing as mandated by the guidelines of the National Historical Commission.
The petition against Domantay before the SP charged that Vice Mayor Mar Espinoza and seven of the municipal councilors conspired with Domantay by crafting an alleged “midnight” resolution that authorized the transfer of Bonifacio and Rizal monuments after they had been already demolished.
“It is a classic case of a cart coming ahead of a horse,” said Lambino and Armas.
The complaint filed against Domantay and his cohorts before the Ombudsman involves his and his wife’s purchase of several properties, some of which using the name of their children and in-laws who are unemployed.
Photocopies of at last eight deeds of absolute sale in the name of Domantay, his wife Asunta, and relatives, were attached to the complaint.
The cause-oriented organization asked the Ombudsman to direct the National Bureau of Investigation and the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group to investigate the lifestyle of Domantay and determine whether his legal sources of funds can justify what he owns and his standard of living.
The lease contract entered into by Domantay with Magic was also cited in the complaint, where the 1,100 sq. meter lot of the municipal government was leased for only P35 per sq. meter per year, which is way below the current market rate that levels at P333.33 per sq. meter per month. —LM
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