NATIONAL Irrigation Administration (NIA) acting administrator Benny Antiporda has been slapped by the Office of the Ombudsman with a one-year suspension without pay after finding him guilty of “harassment and oppression.”
In a September 11 decision, Ombudsman’s office said Antiporda’s “acts failed to live up to the high standards required of a government employee.”
Antipoda was accused of abusive and harassing acts toward one of his staff members, which the Ombudsman said showed “cruelty, severity, unlawful exaction, domination, or excessive use of authority which are tantamount to harassment and oppression.”
“Government employees are supposed to be well-mannered, civil and considerate in their actuations, not only in their relations with the transacting public, but also with their co-workers,” it added.
But the Ombudsman also dismissed the grave misconduct charge against Antiporda, saying his acts “do not constitute grave misconduct” and the elements of corruption and clear intent to violate the law were absent from case.
If Antiporda is already separated from the service, he must still settle a penalty equivalent to his salary for one year in NIA, according to the Ombudsman.
