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Republic of the Philippines General Santos City OFFICE OF THE CITY MAYOR

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EXECUTIVE ORDER NO.% Series of 2014

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AN EXECUTIVE ORDER PRESCRIBING THE RULES OF PROCEDURE IN THE CONDUCT OF DISCIPLINARY CASES IN THE LOCAL GOVERNMENT OF GENERAL SANTOS CITY AND PROVIDING THE GENERAL SANTOS CITY GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATIVE BOARD COMPOSITION, POWERS AND FUNCTIONS

WHEREAS, Section 86, Title Three, Book 1 of Republic Act No. 7160 otherwise known as the Local Government Code of 1991 provides that "In any local government unit, administrative investigation may be conducted by a person or a committee duly authorized by the local chief executive.";

WHEREAS, there is an urgent need to rationalize the conduct of administrative proceedings to expedite the resolution of administrative complaints involving officials and employees of the Local Government Unit of General Santos City;

NOW, THEREFORE, I, RONNEL C. RIVERA, City Mayor of General Santos, by virtue of the powers vested upon me by law do hereby order the establishment of the rules of procedure in the conduct of administrative investigation of disciplinary cases in the local government of General Santos city, adopting hereof the provisions of the Revised Rules on Administrative Cases in the Civil Service (RRACCS), and provide the composition of GENERAL SANTOS CITY GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATIVE BOARD, its powers and functions:

Rule I

TITLE AND CONSTRUCTION

Section 1. Title of the Rules. — These rules shall be known as the Rules of Procedure In The Conduct Of Disciplinary Cases In the Local Government Unit Of General Santos City.

Section 2. Applicability of the Rules of Court. — In the absence of any applicable provision in these Rules, the pertinent provisions of the Revised Rules In Administrative Cases in the Civil Service, the Rules of Court, Rules and Regulations as well as issuances of the Civil Service Commission and prevailing jurisprudence, in the interest of expeditious and just settlement of disputes, whenever practicable and convenient, may be applied suppletorily.

Rule II

COMMENCEMENT OF THE COMPLAINT

Section 1. Who May Initiate. — An administrative complaint may be initiated by the disciplining authority mote proprio or upon complaint of any other person. The

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Disciplining Authority (DA) in the Local Government Unit of General Santos City shall be the City Mayor or the City Vice-Mayor.

Where the complaint is initiated by the disciplining authority, the disciplining authority or his authorized representative shall issue a show-cause memorandum directing the person/s complained of to explain why no administrative case should be filed against him/her/them.

Section 2. Requisites of a Valid Complaint. — Except when initiated by the disciplining authority or his/her authorized representative, no complaint against an official or employee shall be given due course unless the same is in writing, verified, and with certification under oath of non-forum shopping. In cases initiated by the proper disciplining authority or his/her authorized representative, a show cause order is sufficient.

The complaint shall be filed in the Office of the City Mayor/Vice Mayor in triplicate copies written in a clear, systematic manner as to apprise the person complained of, of the nature and cause of the accusation against him/her and to enable him/her to prepare his/her defense or answer/comment. However, should there be more than one (1) person complained of, the complainant is required to submit additional copies corresponding to the number of persons complained of.

The complaint shall contain the following:

a. Full name and address of the complainant; b. Full name and address of the person/s complained of as well as his/her/their

position/s and office/s; c. A narration of the relevant and material facts which shows the acts or

omissions allegedly committed; d. Certified true copies of documentary evidence and affidavits of his/her

witnesses, if any; and e. Certification or statement of non-forum shopping.

The absence of any of the aforementioned requirements may cause the dismissal of the complaint without prejudice to its refilling upon compliance with the above requirements.

Section 3. Withdrawal of the Complaint Desistance of the complainant. — The withdrawal of the complaint or the desistance of the private complainant does not result in its outright dismissal nor discharge the person complained of from any administrative liability. The case may still be given due course when there is obvious truth or merit to the charges or where there is/are documentary evidence that would tend to prove that there is prima facie case to continue with the complaint.

Section 4. Effect of filing of a similar administrative disciplinary case in other fora. — The filing of an administrative disciplinary case in the Civil Service Commission or in the Office of the Ombudsman involving the same parties, on same acts or omissions and same issues shall constitute forum shopping and shall cause the dismissal of the administrative case.

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Rule III

PRELIMINARY INVESTIGATION

Section 1. Action on the Complaint. — Upon receipt of the complaint by the office of the disciplining authority which is sufficient in form and substance, it shall forward the complaint to the Office of the City Legal Officer for preliminary investigation.

The City Legal Officer shall give the person/s complained three (3) days within which to submit Counter-Affidavit/Comment under oath, copy furnished the complainant.

If complainant is not furnished copy of the counter-affidavit/comment by the person complained of, such counter-affidavit/comment submitted to the City Legal Office shall not be received or shall not be considered as received.

Section 2. Requisites and Contents. — The Counter-Affidavit/Comment shall be specific and shall contain material facts and applicable laws, if any, including documentary evidence, sworn statements covering testimonies of witnesses, if there be any, in support of one's case.

Failure to submit Counter-Affidavit/Comment to the City Legal Officer shall be considered a waiver thereof and the preliminary investigation shall be completed even without the counter-affidavit/comment.

Section 3. Resolution After the Preliminary Investigation. — Within five (5) days after termination of the preliminary investigation, the City Legal Officer shall submit his/her resolution with recommendation to the disciplining authority. If a prima fade case exists, the City Legal Officer will recommend that a Formal Charge/Notice of Charge be issued by the Disciplining Authority.

In the absence of a prima facie case, the complaint shall be recommended to be dismissed.

Rule IV

FORMAL CHARGE

Section 1. Issuance of Formal Charge; Contents. — The formal charge shall contain a specification of charge/s, a brief statement of material or relevant facts, accompanied by certified true copies of the documentary evidence, if any, sworn statements covering the testimony of witnesses, a directive to answer the charge/s in writing, under oath in not less than seventy-two (72) hours from receipt thereof, an advice for the respondent to indicate in his/her answer whether or not he/she elects a formal investigation of the charge/s, and a notice that he/she may opt to be assisted by a counsel of his/her choice.

Section. 2. Notice of Charge/s; Attachments. — In instances where the complaint was initiated by a person other than the disciplining authority, the disciplining authority may issue a written notice of the charge/s against the person complained of to which shall be attached copies of the complaint, sworn statement and other documents submitted. The notice shall contain the charges against the person

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complained of with a statement that a prima facie case exists. It shall also include a directive to answer the charge(s) in writing, under oath in not less than seventy-two (72) hours from receipt thereof, and a notice that he/she may opt to be assisted by a counsel of his/her choice.

Rule V

ANSWER

Section 1. Requisites and Contents. — The answer, which is in writing and under oath, shall be specific and shall contain material facts and applicable laws, if any, including documentary evidence, sworn statements covering testimonies of witnesses, if there be any, in support of one's case.

The respondent may also adopt his/her/their Counter-Affidavit/Comment as Answer provided it has conformed to the above requirements.

Section 2. Failure To File An Answer — If the respondent/s fails or refuses to file his/her answer to the formal charge/s or notice of charge/s within three (3) days from receipt thereof, he/she/they shall be considered to have waived his/her/their right to submit the same and the case may be decided based on available records.

Rule VI

FORMAL INVESTIGATION

Section 1. Conduct of Formal Investigation; When Held — A formal investigation shall be conducted by the disciplining authority where the merits of the case cannot be decided judiciously without conducting such investigation or when the respondent elects to have one.

The investigation shall be held not earlier than five (5) days nor later than ten (10) days from receipt of the respondent's answer or upon the expiration of the period to answer. Said investigation shall be finished within thirty (30) days from the issuance of the formal charge unless the period is extended by the disciplining authority in meritorious cases.

Section 2. Submission of Position Paper/Memorandum. — At any stage of the proceedings, the parties may, based on their mutual consent, submit position paper/memorandum and submit the case for resolution without any need for further hearings.

Section 3. Pre-Hearing Conference. — At the commencement of the formal investigation, the Administrative Board shall conduct a pre-hearing conference for the parties to appear, consider and agree on any of the following:

a. Stipulation of facts; b. Simplification of Issues; c. Identification and marking of evidence of the parties; d. Waiver of objections to admissibility of evidence; e. Limiting the number of witnesses, and their names; f. Dates of subsequent hearings; and g. Such other matters as may aid in the prompt and just resolution of the case.

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The agreement entered into during the pre-hearing conference is binding on both parties unless in the interest of justice, the Administrative Board may allow a deviation from the same.

The conduct of a pre-hearing conference is mandatory. The failure of the respondent to attend the pre-hearing conference constitutes a waiver to participate in the pre-hearing conference but may still participate in the formal investigation upon appropriate motion.

Section 4. Hearings and postponement. — No postponement is allowed except in meritorious cases as may be determined by the Board in the exercise of its sound discretion.

Failure or refusal of the respondent to appear or if not represented by counsel during the scheduled hearings despite due notice, would cause the investigation to proceed and the respondent is deemed to have waived the right to present evidence during said hearing.

A sworn statement of a witness(es) properly identified and affirmed shall constitute his/her/their direct testimony, copy furnished the other party.

The Administrative Board may ask clarificatory questions during or after the presentation of the witness.

Section 5. Report of Investigation. — Within fifteen (15) days after the conclusion of the Formal Investigation, a report containing a narration of the material facts established during the investigation as well as the recommendation, shall be submitted by the Administrative I3oard to the Disciplining Authority.

RULE VII

DECISION

Section 1. Finality of Decisions. — A decision rendered by the Disciplining Authority whereby a penalty of suspension for not more than thirty (30) days or a fine in an amount not exceeding thirty (30) days' salary or reprimand is imposed, shall be final and executory and not appealable unless a motion for reconsideration is seasonably filed. However, the respondent may file an appeal when the issue raised is violation of due process.

If the penalty imposed is suspension exceeding thirty (30) days, or fine in an amount exceeding thirty days' salary, the same shall be final and executory after the lapse of the reglementary period for filing a motion for reconsideration or an appeal and no such pleading has been filed.

Section 2. Motion for Reconsideration. — The party adversely affected by the decision may file a motion for reconsideration with the Disciplining Authority who rendered the same within fifteen (15) days from receipt thereof. A motion for extension of time to file a motion for reconsideration is not allowed.

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Only one motion for reconsideration shall be entertained. If a second motion for reconsideration is filed notwithstanding its proscription under this Rules, the finality of action shall be reckoned from the denial of the first motion for reconsideration.

Rule VIII

THE GENERAL SANTOS CITY GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATIVE BOARD COMPOSITION, POWERS AND FUNCTIONS AND ITS SECRETARIAT

Section 1. Composition. — The General Santos City Administrative Board shall be composed of the following:

a) Administrative Board 1

Presiding Officer' shall be designated by the City Mayor/Vice Mayor Members : City Government Department Head of the

Department where the Respondent belongs; HRMDO; and Union Representative (first level or second level)

b) Administrative Board II

Presiding Officer shall be designated by the City Mayor Members : City Government Department Head of the

Department where the Respondent belongs; HRMDO; and Union Representative (first level or second level)

Section 2. Powers and Functions. — The Administrative Board shall have the following powers and functions:

1. Assist the disciplining authority in the formulation of administrative policies and procedures necessary for the development of a more effective and efficient administration of the City Government;

2. Assist in the evaluation and settlement of salient administrative concerns confronting the disciplining authority;

3. Conduct continuously, assessment, evaluation and monitoring of the implementation of administrative policies and procedures thereby recommending improvements for the approval of the disciplining authority;

4. Formulate policies, procedures, systems, and rules and regulations that the Board may deem necessary for it to function as expected subject to the approval of the disciplining authority;

5. Hear and study administrative cases i.e. complaints for or against any employee that may be endorsed by the disciplining authority;

6. Do other related functions as may be directed by the disciplining authority for the improvement of the administrative system of the City Government.

Section 3. Secretariat — The Human Resource Management and Development Office (HRMDO) shall be the Secretariat and repository of the records of the Administrative Board whose functions shall be as follows:

The Presiding Officer shall not participate in the deliberation or formulation of appropriate penalty for

consideration of the disciplining authority.

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a) Send notices to the parties involved; b) Conduct of raffling and assignment of cases to the Administrative Boards (1

and 2); c) Schedule meetings/hearings; d) Document meetings/hearings; e) Furnish documents to respective parties and the Board; f) Prepare and submit reports; g) Conduct orientation on the Administrative guidelines; h) Gather feedback/suggestions and submit the same to the board for

consideration of the disciplining authority.

RULE IX

RAFFLING AND ASSIGNMENT OF CASES

Section 1. Raffling and Assignment of Cases. — No case shall be assigned to any Administrative Board without being raffled. The raffle of cases shall be conducted at the time fixed by the Secretariat.

Section 2. Notice of Raffling To Parties. — The Secretariat shall send notice to the parties of the day and hour for the raffling of their case.

Section 3. Manner of Raffling. — The raffle shall be conducted by the Secretariat at the Human Resource Management and Development Office (HRMDO) and shall proceed with or without the attendance of the parties and their respective counsels.

Immediately after the raffle on any particular day the Secretariat shall indicate the particular Administrative Board to which the case is assigned.

The raffle shall be conducted in such manner that the Administrative Boards 1 and II shall receive more or less the same number of administrative cases.

RULE X

FINAL PROVISIONS

Section 1. Repealing Clause. — All orders, memoranda, rules and regulations, or any part thereof, inconsistent with the provisions of this Order are hereby revoked or modified accordingly.

Section 2. Separability Clause. — If any provision or part hereof is held invalid or unconstitutional, the remainder of this Order not otherwise affected shall remain in full force and effect.

Section 3. Effectivity.— This Executive Order shall take effect immediately.

DONE this JAtida7y gf 31g4uary 2014 in General Santos City, Philippines.

R0 NEL C. RIVERA City Mayor,44..,

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