Photo courtesy Rappler
THE suspension of the more than 20 National Food Authority (NFA) personnel has been lifted by the Ombudsman.
In a radio interview on Friday, Ombudsman Samuel Martires said the suspension order was lifted after investigators from his office found erroneous data on the list provided to them by the Department of Agriculture, which supposedly source the list from the NFA.
The suspended NFA personnel had been linked to the alleged irregular sale of rice buffer stocks to favored traders.
“Kung may pagkakamali sa listahan na iyan, hindi namain kasalanan iyon. Hindi ko alam kung sino nanloko sa amin,” Martires said.
Martires said among the NFA personnel whose suspension was lifted were warehouse supervisors in the National Capital Region (NCR).
“After conducting initial investigation ng mga imbestigador namin, itong nirekomenda nila na i-lift ang preventive suspension sa mga warehouse supervisors sa Iloilo, Antique, Cabanatuan, basta NCR. Basta mga 23 lahat ‘yun,” he said.
Martires added that prior to the 23, they have already lifted the suspension order on one NFA employee.
According to Martires, the NFA said that they thought that the list being sought was for a list of members of the task force for El Niño.
“Ang tanong lang namin, kung listahan ng task force ng El Niño, bakit sinama ‘yung mga kawani na patay na? Ano ‘yung purpose noon? Niloloko niyo ang secretary of Agriculture?” he said.
He said they are also investigating who is behind the list.
The Ombudsman suspended 139 NFA officials and personnel — including administrator Roderico Bioco and assistant administrator for operations John Robert Hermano — as part of its investigation into the supposed “disadvantageous” sale of rice buffer stocks to selected traders.
The suspension took effect on March 4, 2024 and will last for 90 days.
