MANILA — The Office of the Ombudsman has suspended a provincial prosecutor of Misamis Oriental in connection with her alleged involvement in a dispute in their workplace.
This after the Ombudsman found Misamis Oriental Associate Provincial Prosecutor Joan Albarece guilty of simple misconduct.
The anti-graft body imposed on Albarece the penalty of suspension for one month and one day.
The case stemmed from the complaint filed by the prosecutor’s co employee, Queenie Ebonia who had an altercation with Albarece on July 21, 2016 at their workplace at the Office of the Provincial Prosecutor of Misamis Oriental.
In her complaint, Ebonia claimed that Albarece had a fit and slammed the case folders on the table, threw the stapler and puncher, pushed and shouted at her.
The Ombudsman did not give weight to the argument of Albarece that her actions have no bearing on her performance as a prosecutor.
In its decision, the Ombudsman said that “the fact that respondent’s acts were committed within the premises of the OPP strengthens this Office’s view that such acts were intimately connected to her office. Verily, respondent is liable for misconduct for acting menacingly towards complainant.”
“Employees in the government service are bound by the rules of proper and ethical behavior. They are expected to act with self-restraint and civility at all times, even when confronted with rudeness and insolence,” the Ombudsman said in its decision. (Perfecto Raymundo, Jr./PNA)
