INQUIRER Global Nation

CEBU CITY, Philippines - Cebu City officials yesterday sought exemption from an administrative order enforced by the Office of the Ombudsman Visayas concerning the use of government vehicles after office hours.

In a meeting with Deputy Ombudsman for the Visayas Pelagio Apostol, acting Cebu City Mayor Hilario Davide III sought an exemption for the city's elective officials due to the nature of their work.

He said they are often invited to attend public functions scheduled after office hours. Some of these gatherings are held outside Cebu City, he added.

Davide said Cebu City vehicles that deliver basic services to the city like garbage trucks and ambulances should be dispensed with a trip ticket.

He said he finds the AO too restrictive of their functions as public servants.

“At least we were able to confer with them our concerns but the Ombudsman said that the issuance of trip tickets would still prevail,” he said.

While there is no definite answer from the Ombudsman yet, Davide is optimistic that they will reconsider the order in their favor.

The Ombudsman-Visayas is implementing the administrative order as part of their “Oplan Red Plate” program.

The operation was launched last month and is participated in by several agencies such as the Land Transportation Office (LTO). It seeks to identify government officials who use government issued vehicles for personal purposes.

At least one official from the Bureau of Immigration in Central Visayas (BI-7) and a provincial board member were spotted parking their government vehicles at two malls in Cebu City.

However BI-7 officer Reynaldo Almaden said he was escorting foreign investors at the time, while Cebu PB member Wilfredo Caminero said he stopped over for lunch at a mall prior to attending a government function.

The Cebu provincial government also held a meeting with the Ombudsman concerning the program.