CA greenlights sexual harassment case vs. ex-envoy

The Court of Appeals has given the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) the go-signal to continue hearing the administrative complaint filed against a former Philippine ambassador in the Middle East who is accused of sexual harassment.

In a six-page decision penned by Associate Justice Socorro Inting, the CA's Special Fifth Division denied the petition filed by Shulan Primavera, former ambassador to Kuwait, against DFA Committee on Decorum and Investigation (DFA-CODI) resolutions dated June 22, 2013 and July 29, 2013.

The resolutions denied Primavera's motion to set aside the sworn affidavit of his alleged victim, Nerissa Lanza, a domestic helper in Kuwait.

Primavera has questioned the proceedings and alleged grave abuse of discretion on the part of the DFA-CODI. He argued that Lanza's affidavit should be rejected because the notary public failed to submit his notarial report to the notarial section of the Regional Trial Court of Pasay City.

However, the CA held that the DFA-CODI, chaired by Irene Susan Natividad, was correct in denying Primavera's motion based on the Supreme Court's ruling in Destreza v. Plazon, in which the tribunal held that the "notarized deed of sale should be admitted as evidence despite the failure of the notary public in submitting his notarial report to the notarial section of the RTC of Manila."

"Hence, private respondent's sinumpaang reklamo (sworn statement) remains valid and admissible. Consequently, it cannot be expunged from the records of the administrative case," the CA said.

No abuse of discretion

The CA added that the DFA-CODI did not commit grave abuse of discretion when it did not dismiss the case against Primavera despite the lack of a sworn complaint by the complainant.

It clarified that Lanza's sworn statement is different from the formal charge issued by the Secretary of the DFA.

The CA pointed out that even if Lanza's sworn statement was invalid or inadmissible, the formal charge by the Foreign Affairs secretary remains and a proper investigation may prooceed based on the charge.

"Given all the foregoing, we find no basis to rule that the CODI acted with grave abuse of discretion amounting to lack or excess of jurisdiction when it issued the assailed resolutions," the CA ruled.

Concurring with the ruling were Associate Justices Priscilla Baltazar-Padilla and Rodil Zalameda.

Harrassment

Lanza was a domestic helper who worked for Primavera after running away from her allegedly abusive employer in Kuwait.

According to reports, Primavera was offering temporary jobs to wards from the Filipino Workers Resource Center who wanted to earn and save money while waiting for their cases to be resolved or while awaiting repatriation to the Philippines.

Primavera, 63, is a veteran career diplomat who has been in the foreign service for 40 years. He has maintained a clean record before the issue.

On October 22, 2013, the victim managed to become part of a group that was repatriated from Syria. They arrived in the Philippines the next day.

On December 6, 2013, she executed an affidavit charging Primavera with sexual harassment, which she said happened at his residence in three separate instances from February to April 2012.

A formal charge against Primavera was eventually issued by Foreign Affairs Secretary Albert del Rosario based on the complaint filed by Lanza and the documents submitted to the CODI, as well as deliberations and investigations conducted by the department. —KBK, GMA News