This sounds like an episode from Wow Mali, but it’s not.
Fake suspension and dismissal memos purportedly from the Office of the Ombudsman have been making their rounds in government agencies.
“The reality of fake decisions is being investigated by the Office of the Ombudsman, after the discovery of resolutions stating the suspension or dismissal of government officials and employees facing graft and corruption charges before the agency,” reports Jun Ramirez in Manila Bulletin.
The report says several media outlets received resolutions which, upon verification, turned out to be false.
For example: A document claiming that the Ombudsman placed Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System administrator Gerardo Esquivel under a six-month suspension for corruption. While a case had been filed by the MWSS labor association last year against Esquivel and several officials, no such ruling for a suspension has been handed down.
Ombudsman officials appealed to the public to be vigilant against the proliferation of fake documents, encouraging people to verify with their office first should they encounter information of questionable origin.
