ADMINISTRATIVE ORDER NO. 51, August 05, 1954

SUSPENDING FROM OFFICE HONORABLE GEDEON G. QUIJANO, PROVINCIAL GOVERNOR OF MISAMIS OCCIDENTAL, FOR ACTS OF TERRORISM AND ABUSE OF AUTHORITY.

This is an administrative case against Honorable Gedeon G. Quijano, provincial governor of Misamis Occidental, who is charged with wilful neglect of duty, abuse of authority and terrorism in a complaint filed by Atty. Casiano U. Laput dated January 8, 1954; and abuse of authority, grave threats and manhandling, in a separate complaint dated December 29, 1953, filed by Mr. Miguel P. Olivar.

On the charge of terrorism, the Special Investigator of this Office, Atty. Vicente O. Frias, made the following observations: "On the whole, there is no doubt that terrorism existed in the province of Misamis Occidental in the 1949 elections. Even the witnesses of the respondent - governor like Magdaleno Salinas tersely narrated the horrible atrocities and terroristic acts of the armed terrorists: the OCLUS (Ozamiz City Labor Union). Said he: ‘My house, four window glasses were broken, Andres Sarsaba was hurt, Mariano Paculaba in Balatacan was injured, house of Jovito Mirafuentes was stoned and Francisco Morante was hurt by the OCLUS inside the polling place on the election day and that as a consequence of these atrocities Alfredo Kaamiño, Julio Mendez, Dr. Agustin Pagosara, Andres Sarsaba, Timoteo Rivera evacuated Tangub.’ It would not be amiss to state here that this respondent’s witness affirmed the testimony of witness Alfredo Kaamiño that he was terrorized to evacuate Tangub. Witness Pantaleon Cardenas, in similar vein, recalled the terroristic activities in said elections."

The respondent admitted the existence of terrorism in his province in said elections, but placed the blame on ex-Representative Villarin who was then a candidate for Congress. However, the witnesses for the complainant positively averred that they saw and heard the respondent intimidate and threaten with liquidation the leaders of the Nacionalista Party in said province. The simple denial by the respondent and the negative averments of his witnesses cannot and should not prevail over convincing and positive proof. I therefore find the respondent guilty of the charge of terrorism.

As regards the charge of wilful neglect of duty in that he failed to investigate the administrative complaint against Mayor Cosme Cabibil of Plaridel, Misamis Occidental, the records reveal that the respondent caused the investigation of Mayor Cabibil in compliance with the directive of this Office. He is therefore exonerated from this charge.

The charge that respondent took undue advantage of his position in promoting the application of his wife for a fishpond area in barrio Napiot, municipality of Baliangao, which was previously applied for by Mr. Patricio Atay has been, to some extent, substantiated. It has not been established, however, that respondent acted with abuse of his authority.

With respect to the charge of abuse of authority and taking undue advantage of his position as governor in threatening and intimidating, with the employment of armed bodyguards and two PC soldiers, Mr. Marcelo Siaotong and his laborers who were clearing and constructing a fishpond in barrio Danao, municipality of Plaridel, Misamis Occidental, thereby causing them to abandon their work, the evidence reveals that Mr. Siaotong applied for the fishpond area in question as early as 1943, following it up with another application as early as 1952. The respondent also applied for the same area later in 1952, and employed coercive measures calculated to make Mr. Siaotong abandon his claim, by causing the filing of two criminal complaints against the latter and threatening his laborers with criminal prosecution, aside from the threats uttered by the two bodyguards and the PC soldiers to kill said laborers should they persist in their work. As a consequence of these threats the laborers employed by Mr. Siaotong abandoned their work. The respondent is therefore guilty of this charge.

I also find him guilty of grave abuse of power and authority when he threatened and manhandled, without sufficient justification, the person of Atty. Miguel P. Olivar, on the eve of the 1953 elections in barrio Balatacan, municipality of Tangub, Misamis Occidental.

Abuse of authority and terrorism tending to subvert the popular will are serious and grave offenses, whether committed by an appointive or elective official and the higher the authority, power, and position of the offending official, the greater the gravity of the offense. We are still in the infancy of self-government, and toleration of these kinds of offenses may have serious consequences in the future—more so as foreigners regard our country’s government as a great experiment in democracy, and our continued existence as an independent country will largely depend on our ability to maintain a truly democratic government.

For the foregoing, I hereby order the suspension of Honorable Gedeon G. Quijano from the office of governor of Misamis Occidental for a period of six (6) months from notice hereof, with a warning that a repetition of any of the above offenses will be dealt with more severely.

Done at the City of Manila, this 5th day of August, in the year of Our Lord, nineteen hundred and fifty-four, and of the Independence of the Philippines, the ninth.

(Sgd.) RAMON MAGSAYSAY

President of the Philippines

By the President:

(Sgd.) FRED RUIZ CASTRO

Executive Secretary