Idinulog ng Pinoy Aksyon for Governance and the Environment-isang independent advocacy group and think-tank sa tanggapan ni Secretary Michael Lloyd Dino ng Office Of the Presidential Assistant for the Visayas ang anila’y “alarming and dubious acts ni OPAV consultant for Western Visayas Jane Javellana na maihahalintulad umano sa misrepresentation and usurpation of authority.
Sa kanilang letter Of complaint,inihayag ng grupo na batid nila na ang immediate boss ni Ms. Javellana ay si OPAV Assistant Secretary Anthony Gerard “Jonji” Gonzales, dahil siya ang humahawak sa lahat ng OPAV’s concerns sa Western Visayas (Region 6).
Malinaw para sa Pinoy Aksyon na ang ibinigay na posisyon kay
Javellana ay nangangailangan ng integridad. Gayunman, nalulungkot umano sila dahil sa tila hindi nito pagtugon ng tama sa kanyang tungkulin.
Ayon pa sa Pinoy Aksyon, marami nang pagkakataon na na-misrepresent ni Javellana ang kanyang sarili, kabilang sa mga tinukoy ng grupo ay ang mga sumusunod:
1. JAVELLANA has either encouraged or allowed media outlets to refer to her as the Presidential Assistant for the Visayas, the Presidential Assistant for Western Visayas, or the Presidential Adviser for Western Visayas. The evidence of these misrepresentations are attached. They occur in articles published online by various media outlets and social media posts written by known personalities — several of whom are personally acquainted with Javellana.
2. It appears that Javellana — who is known to be very active on social media and has responded to issues raised against her in social media platforms — has not bothered to correct any of the media outlets and people who referred to her as the “Presidential Assistant for the Visayas,” the “Presidential Assistant for Western Visayas,” or the “Presidential Adviser for Western Visayas.”
3. Javellana’s cavalier attitude towards the mistaken references to her position shows us that she wishes to propagate this misrepresentation that has been going on for years. Otherwise, she would have already spoken up about it. Her disregard for protocol shows that she is flagrantly disrespecting the positions and undermining the authority of OPAV Secretary Dino and OPA Assistant Secretary Gonzales. It could also be possible that she has taken advantage of this misrepresentation for her own personal gain.
4. It is also worth noting that in addition to acts of misrepresentation, Javellana could also be penalized for violating a provision of Republic Act No. 11469 or the “Bayanihan to Heal as One” Act. Section 6(f) of the said law — which prescribes an imprisonment of two (2) months or a fine of not less than ten thousand pesos (P10,000.00) but not more than one million pesos (P1,000.000.00) or both” — calls out “individuals or groups creating, perpetrating, or spreading false information regarding the COVID-19 (coronavirus disease 2019) crisis on social media and other platforms, such information having no valid or beneficial effect on the population, and are clearly geared to promote chaos, panic, anarchy, fear, or confusion; and those participating in cyber incidents that make use or take advantage of the current crisis situation to prey on the public through scams, phishing, fraudulent emails, or other similar acts.”
One instance of this particular violation involves the so-called “hijacking” of a flight that was meant for Western Visayan-based medical technicians who were set to go to the Research Institute for Tropical Medicine (RITM) in Manila for training. Arguably, Javellana had gone as far as to openly question the validity of the statement made by OPAV Assistant Secretary Gonzales. It was a clear case of Javellana has not been recognizing the authority of her immediate boss.
Dahil dito sabi ni Bencyrus G. Ellorin ang Secretary General ng Pinoy Aksyon, malinaw na nilabag ni Javellana ang usurpation of authority or official functions. “Under Section One, Article 177 of the Revised Penal Code of the Philippines, this offense is detailed as thus:
Art. 177. Usurpation of authority or official functions. — Any person who shall knowingly and falsely represent himself to be an officer, agent or representative of
any department or agency of the Philippine Government or of any foreign government, or who, under pretense of official position, shall perform any act pertaining to any person in authority or public officer of the Philippine Government or any foreign government, or any agency thereof, without being lawfully entitled to do so, shall suffer the penalty of prision correccional in its minimum and medium periods.” Saad ni Ellorin.
Sabi pa ng Grupo, “As a consultant, JAVELLANA may not be governed by the rules and regulations implemented by the Civil Service Commission. Then again, as she is appointed by the President Rodrigo Duterte to serve the nation, then her conduct should be above reproach. Any violation or disregard of protocols will reflect badly on OPAV and, ultimately, the Office of the President. This is not something that we can risk.
“The reputation of the OPAV’s highest ranking officials and the President himself could be tainted by Javellana’s actions, thus this letter of complaint..” pagtatapos ni Ellorin.
