THE Court of Appeals has stood by its ruling dismissing a motion for reconsideration filed by a police officer who questioned his suspension in 2017 for failure to attend a rehearsal for a Friday flag-lowering ceremony in January 2016.
In a four-page ruling promulgated on December 3, the appellate court’s Former 12th Division dismissed the motion filed by Chief Insp. Alfred Arturo questioning its August 16, 2018 resolution that upheld the filing of administrative charges against him.
The appellate court had earlier junked Arturo’s motion for certiorari, saying it was the wrong remedy to his appeal.
This prompted the police officer to file the motion for reconsideration but the CA said Arturo failed to provide new arguments that would warrant the reversal of its 2018 resolution.
“The issues raised in the instant motion are but mere reiterations of the grounds already judiciously evaluated and passed upon in our aforementioned resolution. We, therefore, find no compelling reason to modify or reverse the same,” the CA ruling penned by Associate Justice Ramon Garcia and concurred in by Associate Justices Eduardo Peralta Jr. and Ronaldo Roberto Martin said.
It will be recalled that the PNP summary hearing officers (PNP-SHO) found Arturo guilty of neglect of duty for failure to attend the rehearsal for flag lowering on January 21, 2016.
The CA said Arturo failed to rebut the allegations hurled against him. Arturo said he failed to attend the ceremony because he needed the get the medical results of his mother, who had undergone a 2D echo test on January 18, 2016.
The appellate court said Arturo knew that he was included in the parade elements and knew the schedule of the so he should have asked someone from his family to get the medical results.
The CA said Arturo should have lodged an appeal with the Civil Service Commission instead of assailing the decision handed down by then PNP chief Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa on Oct. 27, 2017.
