CA affirms dismissal of ex-PNP chief Purisima over courier service deal

The Court of Appeals (CA) has affirmed the dismissal of former Philippine National Police (PNP) chief Alan Purisima in relation to the allegedly anomalous courier service deal for the delivery of licenses to gun owners.

In a decision dated May 12, the CA Special 16th Division junked Purisima's petition for lack of merit.

Purisima turned to the CA after the Office of the Ombudsman found him guilty, along with 10 other police officials, of grave abuse of authority, grave misconduct, and serious dishonesty in June 2015.

Aside from dismissal from service, the police officials were also meted the penalties of forfeiture of retirement benefits, cancellation of eligibility, and perpetual disqualification from reemployment in government service.

They are also barred from taking civil service examinations.

According to the Ombudsman, the contract was awarded to Werfast Documentary Agency, Inc. without holding a public bidding and despite the firm's lack of track record as a courier service company.

The Ombudsman said Werfast was not yet registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) when the contract was entered in May 2011.

The anti-graft body said the company was also not authorized by then Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC) to offer courier delivery service.

The investigation also uncovered that Werfast engaged the services of LBC wherein Werfast collected P190 for deliveries within Metro Manila and P290 for outside Metro Manila, when other courier service providers charge only P90 within Metro Manila.

Purisima was chief of directorial staff of the PNP Civil Security Group (CSG) at the time the memorandum of agreement was signed.

As PNP chief, he issued a memorandum in February 2013 approving the recommendation of then-CSG chief Gil Meneses that the delivery of license cards should be facilitated by Werfast.

In its decision, the CA said Purisima was complicit in making it appear that Werfast is a qualified courier service provider of the PNP and that the company's appointment "proceeded in accordance with the law, rules and regulations."

"By failing to prevent irregularities which are all too obvious to ignore or to take immediate steps to rectify the same, petitioner had tolerated the same and allowed it to wreak havoc on the delivery of services to the public,” the CA said through Associate Justice Ramon Cruz.

Apart from Purisima, other police officials ordered dismissed by the Ombudsman are the following:

• Chief Superintendent Raul Petrasanta, former Central Luzon police chief
• Chief Superintendent Napoleon Estilles
• Senior Superintendent Allan Parreño,
• Senior Superintendent Eduardo Acierto
• Senior Superintendent Melchor Reyes
• Superintendent Lenbell Fabia
• Chief Inspector Sonia Calixto
• Chief Inspector Nelson Bautista
• Chief Inspector Ricardo Zapata Jr.
• Senior Inspector Ford Tuazon

Case records show Petrasanta, Bautista, Zapata, Acierto and Parreño had already been cleared of liability and reinstated by the appellate court.

Purisima, a close friend of then-President Benigno Aquino III, is already facing graft charges before the Sandiganbayan in connection with the contract.

The former PNP leader was also charged with graft and usurpation of public functions over his participation in the planning of the police operation aimed at neutralizing Malaysian terrorist Zulkifli bin Hir alias Marwan and Filipino bomb maker Abdul Basit Usman despite being under preventive suspension by the Ombudsman in connection with the Werfast deal. —KG, GMA News