Probe on officials who defied travel ban wraps up

The Department of the Interior and Local Government is wrapping up the investigation on local officials who violated the foreign travel ban ordered for the disaster preparedness efforts for Super Typhoon Uwan, with cases soon tobe filed against them before the Office of the Ombudsman.

- By RAINIER ALLAN RONDA

“It’s nearly complete so we will file the corresponding cases with the ombudsman against those who violated (the foreign travel ban),” Interior Secretary Jonvic Remulla said in a chance interview at Camp Crame yesterday.

Remulla said the cases that could be filed are abandonment of duty, gross neglect and insubordination. He said there were about 24 officials who traveled out of the country during the ban from Nov. 9 to 15, subject to investigation.

Asked if Isabela Gov. Rodolfo Albano III was among the officials under investigation, Remulla said Albano had been cleared, as he had flown to Germany for an agricultural fair before the announcement of the foreign travel ban.

“I saw his (travel) records, his departure flight was on the 8th (of November), the ban was (on November) 9th,” Remulla said.

He said that Albano was only guilty of his ill-advised sense of humor when the local executive told critics of his flight to Germany to “chill.”