The Office of the Ombudsman meted a six-month suspension without pay to a town mayor of Oriental Mindoro province after finding him administratively liable in connection with irregularities in the operation of a cockfighting arena.

This is the second suspension of Mayor German Rodegerio, after his first suspension last March.

In a copy of the order made public Monday, Assistant Ombudsman Pilarita Lapitan said Rodegerio’s suspension took effect on Dec. 1, 2023, pursuant to a decision handed down by the Ombudsman last Aug. 31 finding the mayor administratively liable for simple misconduct.

This stemmed from the complaint filed by four individuals — Vic Ruskin Ong, Wilfredo Condesa, Teotimo Famplume Jr. and Rimando Recalde — who claimed that town officials, including the mayor, gave unwarranted benefits to the Gloria Cockpit Arena (GCA) which did not have a franchise.

The latest suspension order covers Rodegerio’s issuance of 295 permits for cockfighting operations of the GCA from December 2017 to February 2021.

The Ombudsman earlier suspended Rodegerio for issuing 127 permits in favor of GCA from December 2018 to November 2019.

Rodegerio, meanwhile, claimed he acted in good faith and merely continued what his predecessors did when he issued permits to GCA.

He said the issuance was based on municipal resolutions issued by past administrations and even during the time of then-vice mayor Ramon Solas, who was one of the complainants.

Gloria, with 27 villages, has a population of about 51,000 as of the 2020 census by the Philippine Statistics Authority.

It is located some 77 kilometers away from Calapan, the provincial capital. (PNA)

Photo credit: Facebook/gloriaorientalmindoro