Grievance committee formed to probe Gapan scams amid boy's forged certificate of live birth

By Jason de Asis

GAPAN CITY, Nueva Ecija, February 11, 2011-Mayor Christian Tinio has formed a grievance committee to investigate and conduct summary hearings against appointive officials and employees following the involvement of an employee of the city’s civil registrar office here in the falsification of the certificate of live birth of an eight-year-old boy and for the mysterious disappearance of the marriage contract of his parents.

In Executive Order 2011-02, Tinio designated his executive assistant Danilo Padiernos as chairman of the five-men grievance committee. The other members of the committee are human resource management officer Cesar Mendoza, city administrator Eduardo Almera, city engineer Carl Anthony Alfaro and assistant city treasurer Mauro Marcelo.

Tinio said he formed the committee after his office received numerous complaints against appointive local city officials and employees. He stressed that its formation was in line with Section 86 of Republic Act 7160, otherwise known as the Local Government Code which provides that administrative investigation may be conducted by a person or a committee duly authorized by the local chief executive.

The committee’s creation came after the Sangguniang Panlunsod, presided over by Vice Mayor Rodel Matias, opened its probe on Jocelyn Dimacale, clerk of the office of the city civil registrar following a complaint-affidavit lodged before the council by Desiree Bonifacio of Barangay San Nicolas here.

Tinio said whoever was responsible for the anomaly will be held responsible once proven guilty.   

Bonifacio is the mother of Davis Mandy Afable.        Afable was born last May 28, 2002 to Bonifacio and Manuel Afable, an American citizen. Exactly a month later, the elder Afable and Bonifacio got married.

Bonifacio said in the process, Davis Mandy was “legitimated through subsequent marriage,” as borne by the couple’s application for marriage license and the certificate of live birth.   The couple’s relationship, however, went sour and they later separated.

Sometime last year, Bonifacio went to the National Statistics Office to request a copy of their authenticated marriage contract and Davis Mandy’s certificate of live birth. To her surprise, the copy of the marriage contract could not be found and the certificate of her son’s live birth was forged through false entries.

A copy of the certificate of live birth of Davis Mandy showed that the boy’s middle name and surname Afable were erased. The same document, however, clearly indicated that Davis Mandy was “legitimated” through the subsequent marriage of his parents on June 28, 2002. Because of the forged certificate of live birth, Bonifacio said it would appear that Davis Mandy was an illegitimate child and was deprived of benefits.

In her complaint-affidavit, she also attached a copy of certificate of live birth signed by city civil registrar Danilo Tan and Dimacale dated July 5, 2002 showing that she and Afable got married. But in another certificate of live birth dated January 21, 2011 also signed by Tan and clerk 2 Arthur Merle, there were no entries opposite the lines “date and place of marriage of parents.”

Bonifacio said when she confronted Dimacale about the falsified certificate of live birth and the missing marriage contract, the latter admitted she pulled out the authentic documents on the request of the elder Afable. (Jason de Asis)